Kremlin: Moscow ready to support Pavel Durov in every way

France may release Telegram CEO Durov on August 28

Pavel Durov could be released as early as tomorrow, August 28, according to a statement from the French prosecutor's office, Coindesk said.

Photo: VK by Pavel Durov

Kremlin's official spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced Moscow's readiness to provide assistance to Telegram founder Pavel Durov after his arrest in France.

"Considering his Russian citizenship, we are ready to provide all necessary assistance and support, but the situation is complicated by the fact that he is also a citizen of France," the Kremlin spokesman said.

Peskov also expressed hope that Durov could organize his own defense.

Durov is facing serious charges, Peskov added.

"The charges brought are very serious indeed. They require no less serious evidence. Otherwise, there will be a direct attempt to restrict freedom of communication and, one might even say, direct intimidation of the head of a large company. That is, there will be politics involved, even though Mr. Macron denied the presence of politics in the story yesterday."

Russian officials ordered to delete Telegram correspondence

Soon after Durov's arrest, it was reported that Russian officials were ordered to delete their correspondence in their Telegram accounts.

Civil servants "in theory" should not use messengers for official purposes, since none of them, including Telegram, are reliable in terms of information security.

"No one is calling on anyone to clean anything," Dmitry Peskov noted commented on earlier reports which said that Russian officials were allegedly instructed to delete official correspondence in their Telegram accounts after Durov's detention.

France disappointed in Telegram

President of France Emmanuel Macron has been actively using Telegram since the beginning of his first presidential campaign. Members of the French government and politicians "of all ranks and parties,” especially among Macron's supporters use the messenger service as well, Politico said citing a former member of the French parliament.

An unnamed French Justice Ministry official familiar with the background of the Durov case said that Telegram caused disappointment within the French authorities due to their unwillingness to cooperate:

"They have angered people by their refusal to give answers in dirty cases," the official said.

Pavel Durov's bodyguard and assistant were released after questioning, Le Figaro said citing a source close to the investigation.

Durov arrived in Paris accompanied by his bodyguard and a woman was later identified as Yulia Vavilova, his assistant.

Meanwhile, the authorities of the United Arab Emirates are monitoring the development of the case of their citizen Pavel Durov. The UAE sent a request to France to urgently provide the entrepreneur with all consular services he needs, the UAE Foreign Ministry said.

Pavel Durov will remain in custody in France until August 28, AFP news agency said.

Details

Pavel Valeryevich Durov (Russian: Па́вел Вале́рьевич Ду́ров; born 10 October 1984) is a Russian-born French and Emirati business executive, entrepreneur, and investor who is a co-founder and the chief executive officer of Telegram Messenger Inc. and a co-founder of social networking site VK (short for its original name VKontakte; Russian: ВКонтакте, meaning InContact). Since 2021, he has held citizenship in four countries. Durov was listed on the Forbes Billionaires List in 2023, with a net worth of $11.5 billion. His fortune is largely driven by his ownership of Telegram. As of 25 August 2024, Durov was the 120th richest person in the world, with a net worth of $15.5 billion, according to Forbes. In 2022, he was recognized by Forbes as the richest expat in the United Arab Emirates. In February 2023, Arabian Business named him the most powerful entrepreneur in Dubai. On 24 August 2024, Durov was arrested in France on criminal charges relating to an alleged lack of content moderation on Telegram and refusal to work with police, which allowed the spread of criminal activity.