Telegram founder Pavel Durov has pushed back against reports that his detainment in France last summer forced the messaging platform to begin complying with European regulations, Kazinform News Agency reports.
In a message posted on his Telegram channel, Durov addressed what he called a false claim published by a French newspaper. "Yesterday, a French newspaper claimed that my detainment in France last summer ‘finally’ forced Telegram to comply with European rules," he wrote, calling the allegation "false" because "Telegram has always been compliant with EU laws."
The information about this legal way to reach us could be obtained on our apps, website or just by googling ‘telegram EU police’ - long before my detainment in France. Why the French courts and police had been ignoring this process clearly defined by EU law is still a mystery to us, but it’s unfair to say that Telegram somehow ignored European rules. Paradoxically, it was French law enforcement that for some reason had been ignoring them," Durov said.
He continued, saying that "misinformation" will not be tolerated by him: "I love France and respect its police force, so I didn’t want to embarrass anyone by pointing out the above. But I cannot ignore when such obvious misinformation about Telegram is spread."
Durov added that Telegram has consistently invested in legal compliance and "in the EU in particular, we always start preparing to comply with laws years before they even come into force."
Back in August 2024, Durov was detained in Paris on August 24, spent four days in custody, and appeared in court. The investigation revolved around the alleged involvement in offenses spanning 12 different charges, with French authorities believing Telegram was used in connection to these crimes. In his first statement after the detention, Durov also pointed out that media portrayals of Telegram are "absolutely untrue."
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