French President Macron Affirms That Arrest of Telegram CEO is Not Politically Motivated

August 26, 2024 TruthUSA

The arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov by the Paris prosecutor’s office is linked to a judicial inquiry that began in July.

French authorities are denying any political motive behind the detention of Telegram’s CEO over the weekend.

French President Emmanuel Macron stated on Aug. 26 that the arrest of Pavel Durov was the result of an independent investigation and not politically driven.

Macron shared France’s official statement on the social media platform X, affirming France’s commitment to freedom of expression within legal boundaries to protect citizens and uphold their fundamental rights.

Macron refuted claims of political bias and clarified that the arrest was not a political decision, emphasizing that it is the judiciary’s role to make a ruling.

Additionally, the Paris prosecutor’s office released a statement revealing that Durov’s arrest was based on an investigation opened in July encompassing multiple alleged crimes.

The allegations against Durov include involvement in the sale of illegal substances and child pornography, fraud, facilitating organized crime transactions, and refusal to cooperate with authorities as mandated by law.

Authorities have extended Durov’s detention until Wednesday evening, following which they must decide whether to release him or press charges.

In a statement, Telegram affirmed its compliance with EU laws and stated that its content moderation conforms to industry standards and is continuously improving.

“Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and frequently travels in Europe. Blaming a platform or its owner for the platform’s misuse is baseless,” the company asserted.

Some Western governments have criticized Telegram for inadequate content moderation, which they claim makes the platform susceptible to illicit activities like money laundering, drug dealing, and the dissemination of exploitative material.

In 2022, Germany fined Telegram’s operators $5 million for failing to establish proper channels to report illegal content or appoint a representative in Germany, as mandated by German laws governing significant online platforms. Brazil also temporarily suspended Telegram last year for failing to provide data related to neo-Nazi activities during a police investigation into school shootings.

Although Russian authorities attempted to ban Telegram, their efforts were unsuccessful, and the ban was lifted in 2020.

Durov, who holds citizenship in France, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, and St. Kitts and Nevis, co-founded Telegram with his brother after leaving his previous company following clashes with Russian authorities.

His earlier messaging service, VKontakte, faced scrutiny from the Russian government, leading Durov to sell his stake in the company after refusing government demands to disclose user information linked to political events in Ukraine.

Since then, Telegram has become a prominent source of information in Ukraine and Russia, used by media outlets and governments to disseminate messages related to the ongoing conflict and provide real-time alerts.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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