Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, has accused French intelligence services of pressuring him to censor certain Telegram channels, allegedly in exchange for leniency in his French legal case following his 2024 arrest.
Speaking with popular US podcaster Lex Fridman in an episode released yesterday, Durov said the intelligence services wanted him to censor opposition-linked Telegram channels ahead of Moldova’s elections.
Durov alleged he was approached by an intermediary regarding the elections in Moldova and was given names of accounts that were deemed problematic.
Telegram found that some named groups and bots that were sent to him were problematic and in violation of Telegram’s rules.
Durov said his company received another “list of dozens of channels” but that there was nothing wrong with them and there were no justified reasons to ban them, despite what he alleged were the wishes of the Moldovan and French governments.
He claimed that giving his co-operation to block them was explicitly linked to leniency in his Paris legal case and more leniency from the judge. He framed that as a quid pro quo to silence anti-government voices at the behest of the French Government. He said he refused, citing Telegram’s commitment to free speech and user privacy.
“Interestingly enough, the French intelligence services that were asking us to do this in Moldova, let me know through the contact that, after Telegram banned the few channels that were in violation of our rules in Moldova, they talked to my judge,” he alleged.
Durov said it was “confusing” and “shocking” that his co-operation regarding Moldova might have influenced his court case in Paris because “the two matters have nothing in common”.
He alleged the same had happened during the Romanian elections, where he was urged to “silence Conservative voices” and channels critical of pro-European Union candidates.
Durov also disclosed that the French Government has demanded Telegram take down a far-left group on his social media app, despite its members not calling for anything antisocial or violent.
The French-Russian tech entrepreneur warned that those who have never lived in countries without fundamental freedoms often fail to grasp the danger of gradually compromising values, principles, rights and liberties — not realising what is truly at stake.
Here's my 4+ hour conversation with Pavel Durov (@durov), founder and CEO of Telegram. This was one of the most fascinating and powerful conversations I've ever had in my life.
We discuss everything from his philosophy on freedom to government bureaucracies, intelligence… pic.twitter.com/DDBTnE7A2t
— Lex Fridman (@lexfridman) September 30, 2025
Durov’s spat with France follows his August 2024 arrest in Paris, which he frames as retaliation for his earlier refusal to comply with government demands.
Durov, a French citizen since 2022, was arrested on August 24, 2024, at Le Bourget Airport near Paris.
Charged with six offences, including “complicity in criminal association” and failing to co-operate on issues such as child exploitation and drug trafficking, he was interrogated by numerous investigators over a five-day period.
Released on €5 million bail, Durov remains under judicial supervision, barred from freely travelling without official permission.
In the Fridman podcast, Durov describes his arrest as a calculated move, leveraging his citizenship to pressure Telegram into compliance with French authorities.
In an earlier reaction, the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, labelled Durov’s claims as “unsubstantiated”, accusing him of creating publicity stunts.
On September 28, the French Government retweeted a post by French Response, which stated: “Durov likes making accusations while elections are ongoing.”
With more than 900 million users, Telegram is a critical platform in regions like eastern Europe, where it hosts both pro and anti-government voices.
Its end-to-end encryption and minimal moderation make it a haven for free expression but also a target for regulators.
🇲🇩 About a year ago, while I was stuck in Paris, the French intelligence services reached out to me through an intermediary, asking me to help the Moldovan government censor certain Telegram channels ahead of the presidential elections in Moldova.
After reviewing the channels…
— Pavel Durov (@durov) September 28, 2025
