Pavel Durov, the CEO of Telegram, was arrested at the Bourget airport outside Paris on suspicion of breaking regulations pertaining to encrypted communications software.
The tech mogul was captured by French officials late on Saturday night as he got off a private flight from Azerbaijan. As a result, vocal X and Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced their support for the 39-year-old.
Due to demands for consular access by the Kremlin’s embassy in France, Durov holds dual citizenship with the United Arab Emirates and Russia. Now that Telegram is headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates—a “neutral country, Durov typically resides there. After refusing to close down opposition groups on his VK platform, which he later sold, he left Russia in 2014. Durov traveled to London, Berlin, Singapore, and San Francisco before settling in the Middle East for both his personal and professional life.
The entrepreneur asserted that Telegram “will probably hit one billion active users within the year” in an interview conducted in April with Tucker Carlson, a prominent figure in US conservative media.
While the app’s design and functionality are similar to those of other instant messaging services, its privacy features help it stand apart.
It is said that preliminary investigations have been launched by French police into a number of alleged infractions, such as failing to comply with law enforcement and requirements related to moderation.
Musk Joins the Discussion Regarding the Arrest of Telegram Chief Durov
Musk supported his rival as the word became out, maybe keeping an eye out for a future run-in with US and European authorities.
By making posts on his X platform, he brought attention to Durov’s situation and perhaps started a wave of support for the creator of Telegram.
Durov has previously disclosed that he is the target of severe scrutiny from US officials, alleging that one agency tried to hire one of his programmers in order to establish a backdoor into Telegram.
In 2018, Russia made an unsuccessful attempt to block the app for refusing to provide encryption data.
On Sunday, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said that Durov had erred greatly in fleeing his own country in the hopeless hope that he would not have to deal with security agencies outside.
“It was a miscalculation,” Medvedev remarked.
Now that we have allies, he is perceived as dangerous and unpredictable due to his Russian heritage. Durov needs to understand at last that a person cannot select their fatherland.
