Despite denials by the French authorities, evidence continues to accumulate that suggests the arrest of the founder of the encrypted messaging service Telegram was a disguised political maneuver.
Pavel Durov was arrested last Saturday, August 24, as his private jet had just landed near Paris, France. Many voices were quickly raised, all over the world, to denounce this arrest, which many perceive as a serious attack on freedom of expression and communication.
On August 26, French President Emmanuel Macron decided to make a statement on X, denying accusations that Pavel Durov's detention was politically motivated. These denials clearly did not convince international public opinion, especially since other information embarrassing for the French authorities was quick to circulate.
That same day, a spokesperson for the European Commission said that the arrest of the founder of Telegram had nothing to do with the company's obligations under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), marking the European Commission's desire to distance itself from France.
"Criminal prosecution is not part of the potential sanctions for violations of the Digital Services Act. The Digital Services Act does not define what is illegal, nor does it establish a criminal offence; it cannot therefore be used to make arrests," the spokesperson said.
The arrest of the head of a digital platform for offences committed by users of this platform is in fact unprecedented in the world and the European Commission does not seem to want to appear to endorse such an act.
To make matters worse, the French weekly "Le Canard enchaîné" revealed yesterday, August 27, that Pavel Durov allegedly declared during his arrest that he was to have dinner the same evening as his arrival with President Macron. Although the presidential services denied it, this statement by Pavel Durov raises questions about the French president's involvement in the ongoing affair.
It suggests that President Macron himself lured Pavel Durov to France by inviting him to dinner, to give the country's security services the opportunity to imprison him.
If this statement were to prove true, it would then become clear that the arrest of Pavel Durov is eminently political and that the charges (many of them fanciful) brought against him are nothing more than a smokescreen and a pretext to try to cover up much darker motivations.
In any case, France's image risks being seriously tarnished by this dark affair. Until now, no other country had dared to treat a digital communications company manager like a common criminal. France is opening a dangerous precedent for freedom of expression and communication.
#TelegramCEO #TelegramCEO #cryptography #freespeech
