Russia has charged Telegram founder Pavel Durov with facilitating terrorism, over allegations that the messaging app has been used for recruitment by Ukrainian secret services.
Russia charges Durov as part of a broader case alleging Telegram enabled sabotage operations against the Russian state.Russia’s domestic security service, the FSB, said Telegram had been used to prepare and coordinate acts of sabotage and terror inside Russia, and accused the platform of failing to remove channels, chats and bots used by Ukraine.
An international arrest warrant has been issued for the Russian-born Durov, who lives abroad. Durov’s Response Shortly after the charge was announced, Telegram’s account on X posted an image showing Durov holding up his middle finger. He has previously accused Russian authorities of fabricating new pretexts to restrict Russians’ access to Telegram.
Telegram remains popular in Russia, used by tens of millions of people, although authorities have been restricting access as part of a wider crackdown on internet freedom. The app is also widely used in Ukraine. Who Is Pavel Durov?Durov, 41, is a multibillionaire who has lived outside Russia for many years and holds both French and United Arab Emirates passports. It remains unclear whether other countries or authorities would comply with an arrest warrant issued by Russia.
Durov left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform. He had previously founded VKontakte, the popular Russian social media company often described as the “Facebook of Russia. “Telegram’s Global Reach and Past Legal Troubles Telegram is used by around 950 million people worldwide and has positioned itself as an app focused on user privacy, distinguishing it from the moderation policies prioritised by other major global social media companies.
The platform has faced criticism over its approach to app moderation in the past, though it has denied having insufficient practices. Durov was arrested and placed under formal investigation in France in 2024 over allegations that he failed to properly moderate the app to reduce criminality. He was allowed to return home months later, though the investigation has continued.
