Elon Musk Backs Pavel Durov After Telegram Chief Is Arrested in France

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has been arrested at Bourget airport, near Paris, over alleged offenses relating to the encrypted messaging app.?

Late Saturday evening, as the tech billionaire stepped off a private jet from Azerbaijan, he was apprehended by French authorities. This led to outspoken X and Tesla boss Elon Musk declaring his support for the 39-year-old.

Durov has dual Russian and United Arab Emirates citizenship, as the Kremlin’s embassy in France has demanded consular access to the tech mogul.?Telegram is now based in Dubai, UAE, where Durov usually resides because it is a “neutral country”. He fled Russia in 2014 after declining to shut down opposition groups on his VK platform, which he subsequently sold.?Durov spent time in London, Berlin, Singapore, and San Francisco before putting down personal and business roots in the Middle East.

In an April interview with US conservative media figure Tucker Carlson, the entrepreneur claimed Telegram “will probably hit one billion active users within the year.”

The app is similar in appearance and purpose to other instant messaging services but sets itself apart with its privacy credentials.

French police are said to have opened preliminary investigations into an array of alleged offenses, including moderation obligations and a failure to cooperate with law agencies.

Musk Enters the Debate Over Telegram Chief Durov’s Arrest

As the news spread, Musk backed his opposite number, possibly with one eye on a potential confrontation with authorities in the US and Europe, further down the line.

He posted to his X platform, raising awareness of Durov’s plight and likely igniting a wave of support for the Telegram founder.

20 years … https://t.co/UknQRzqXw2

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 24, 2024

Durov previously revealed he receives intense attention from authorities in the States, claiming that one agency attempted to recruit one of his engineers to create backdoor access to Telegram.

Russia also attempted to censor the app in 2018 for not handing over encryption data, but the efforts were unsuccessful.

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stated on Sunday that Durov had made a grave error by leaving his homeland, with a forlorn belief that he would not have to engage with security services abroad.

“He miscalculated,” said Medvedev.

“For all our common enemies now, he is Russian, and therefore unpredictable and dangerous. Durov should finally realize that one cannot choose one’s fatherland.”