Telegram founder Durov responds to Russian allegations, saying he was listed as a “terrorist” because he refused large-scale surveillance demands
According to market reports, in the face of Russia adding him to the lists of terrorists and extremists and launching an international manhunt, Telegram founder Pavel Durov made an official public response yesterday.
Durov said the reason the Russian authorities brought accusations against him is that Telegram refused to comply with the Russian government’s demands for large-scale monitoring and content review.
Durov also revealed that under relevant Russian laws, he has now been banned from publishing information on the internet. In this regard, he said that the Russian authorities clearly have not sorted out the boundaries of their jurisdiction, and cannot unilaterally restrict his personal right to speak out online.
Earlier, Russia’s Federal Security Service filed criminal proceedings against Durov on suspicion of assisting terrorist activities. The Russian side accused Telegram of failing to remove communities and bots within the platform that, according to Ukrainian intelligence agencies, were used to plan attacks and sabotage operations.
This incident also further highlights a long-standing disagreement over data control between the Russian federal government and Telegram.
At present, Telegram’s headquarters is in Dubai, and Durov currently holds citizenships in multiple countries including the UAE, making it highly unlikely that he will be extradited back to Russia.
#Telegram #数据隐私争议