DISINFO: The US is behind Telegram app founder’s arrest
SUMMARY
The US is behind Pavel Durov’s arrest. The US ordered the French authorities to arrest Telegram’s founder as part of its sanctions framework. It is obvious that the arrest is an attack on TON, a blockchain-based platform originally developed by Telegram’s creators, in which major Russian companies have invested. That is, in part, a continuation of the US sanctions policy.
RESPONSE
Conspiracy theory not backed by any evidence. There is nothing indicating that the US is involved in any way in the arrest of Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov. France is a sovereign country and this disinformation story aims to promote a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about lost sovereignty and other Western countries as US vassals.
French authorities have imposed charges against Pavel Durov for 12 different crimes, including complicity in the distribution of child pornography and the selling of drugs, money laundering, and a refusal to cooperate with law enforcement. One of the main charges is Telegram’s inability to prevent sex crimes against minors on the platform. According to The Washington Post, Jean-Michel Bernigaud, secretary general of Ofmin (a French police agency focused on preventing violence against minors), stated that “at the heart of the case is the absence of moderation and cooperation on the part of the platform, especially in the fight against child sex crimes.”
Pro-Kremlin disinformation outlets frequently accuse the US of being behind all kind of events and developments around the world, without providing any evidence.
See other examples, such as claims like The West arrested Telegram app founder Durov because it failed in its fight against Russia, or Durov arrest is an attempt to shut down Telegram app because it tells the truth, or The real reason for Telegram founder Pavel Durov’s arrest is to cover up events in Palestine, or that the US created Japan’s crisis sacrificing primer minister Kishida as a scapegoat, that the Kursk attack plan was developed by top US officials, that protests in Venezuela are definitely financed by Washington, or that the US Deep State is behind Ukraine’s suspension of oil deliveries to Hungary.