The Inside Story – POLITICO

Macron’s gift to Durov: citizenship

Durov’s arrest poses a challenge for France, which has been accused of suppressing free speech on platforms like Telegram, and for Macron, who has a longstanding relationship with the tech mogul.

There has been growing public speculation that Durov’s arrest may have deeper motives — namely, a possible attempt by Western powers to gain control of Telegram. During a meeting last week, a senior Western intelligence official, who asked not to be named, suggested that Telegram could also serve as a tool for recruiting spies, making Durov a figure of significant interest to the authorities. However, there is no concrete evidence to support this theory.

Durov, who was born in St. Petersburg, has said he left Russia in 2014 amid growing tensions with the Kremlin. According to his account, he refused to provide contact details of Ukrainian pro-democracy activists on VKontakte, the social media platform he launched before Telegram, during the Euromaidan movement of 2013-14.

In addition to holding French and Russian citizenship, Durov is also a citizen of the United Arab Emirates, where he lives and runs Telegram, and of the Caribbean island nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, where citizenship is granted in exchange for investments.

Both Russia and the United Arab Emirates offered Durov diplomatic assistance, which he declined, a French government official told POLITICO. “The individual in question refused Russian consular protection and an Emirati consular visit, but agreed to be kept informed of his situation by the Emirati embassy,” the official said.

“We are in contact with the French authorities on this matter and with Pavel Durov’s representatives,” a UAE diplomatic official told POLITICO