Duma Speaker Viacheslav Volodin accused the US of being “behind the arrest” of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France. This was reported by the Interfax agency. “In fact, Washington is behind Durov’s arrest. On the eve of the US presidential election, it is important for Biden to take control of Telegram,” said the speaker of the lower house of the Russian Parliament without providing evidence to support his words.
“Telegram is one of the few and at the same time the largest Internet platform over which the United States has no influence. At the same time, it operates in many countries that are of interest to them,” Volodin said. “For Washington,” the speaker of the Russian Duma continued, “surveillance of social networks, their complete censorship and subordination, including through blackmail under the pretext of combating various types of threats, are traditional methods of political management and external influence.”
007 Moscow Chief, Durov Won’t Give Information to the West
The head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergei Naryshkin, said he was confident that Telegram founder Pavel Durov, who is detained in France, would not disclose sensitive information to the West, Tass reported.
“I expect he won’t do that,” Naryshkin told reporters when asked if there were concerns in Moscow that Durov was passing sensitive information to Russia.
Durov will remain in police custody for another 48 hours
Telegram CEO and founder Pavel Durov will remain in police custody for another 48 hours as part of an investigation into alleged cybercrime against the messaging platform, the Paris prosecutor’s office said on Thursday, after his detention was extended last night. Durov was arrested on Saturday. The investigation concerns crimes related to suspected illicit transactions, child pornography and fraud on the app, as well as refusal to provide information to authorities. The Telegram founder is expected to remain in custody until tomorrow.