Russia accuses Telegram founder of aiding terrorism, seeks international arrest

Russia accuses Telegram founder of aiding terrorism, seeks international arrest

Russia is seeking to place Telegram founder Pavel Durov on an international wanted list, alleging that his messaging app has been used by Ukrainian intelligence to organize terrorist attacks and conduct espionage inside Russia.

The country’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Wednesday that it had charged Durov with aiding terrorist activity, claiming Telegram failed to remove channels and bots allegedly used by Ukrainian intelligence, as well as terrorist and extremist groups.

According to the FSB, Ukrainian intelligence used Telegram to recruit Russians, including teenagers, for sabotage missions through the popular dating bot Daivinchik. The agency alleged that Ukrainian operatives posed as young women online to build relationships with men before persuading or coercing them into carrying out attacks.

Russian authorities said 46 people between the ages of 12 and 22 had been detained since last summer over the alleged recruitment campaign. The FSB also released a video it said showed several young people confessing to setting fire to gas stations in Russia after being recruited by anonymous handlers through Telegram.

Recorded Future News could not independently verify the agency's claims or the authenticity of the videos. Ukraine's intelligence services did not comment on the allegations.

Daivinchik functions similarly to Tinder but runs within Telegram and has up to 16 million monthly users. In December, the bot was added to Russia's official register of banned websites over content authorities classified as child pornography and what Russia describes as "LGBT propaganda."

Telegram did not immediately issue a formal response. However, shortly after the FSB's announcement, the company's press service account on X posted a photo of Durov raising his middle finger — an image Russian media noted was originally published by Durov in 2011 during his dispute with Mail.ru over control of VKontakte, the social network he founded before launching Telegram.

Durov said in February that Russian authorities had opened a criminal case accusing him of aiding terrorism.

"Each day, the authorities fabricate new pretexts to restrict Russians' access to Telegram as they seek to suppress the right to privacy and free speech," he said at the time. "A sad spectacle of a state afraid of its own people."

Battle against Telegram

Russia has repeatedly clashed with Telegram, which has nearly 90 million users in the country, over its refusal to comply with some government demands to remove content and localize user data.

Officials have long accused the platform of failing to remove material they classify as extremist, while Durov says Moscow is trying to force Russians onto state-controlled communications services.

Although Telegram is now reportedly inaccessible in Russia without a VPN or other circumvention tools, Russian government institutions, including the Kremlin, continue to publish updates on the platform daily.

Earlier this month, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said discussions with Telegram over restoring broader access in Russia were continuing, although he suggested the company had shown little interest in negotiations.

Andrei Svintsov, deputy chairman of the State Duma's Committee on Information Policy, told the state media outlet TASS that Telegram could continue operating legally if it established a representative office in Russia, stored Russian users' personal data inside the country and cooperated with Russian security services on terrorism investigations.

Durov faces pressure

The Russian case adds to Durov's growing legal troubles abroad. In August 2024, French authorities detained Durov upon his arrival at an airport and later charged him over allegations that Telegram had failed to adequately combat criminal activity and cooperate with law enforcement.

The French investigation focused on Telegram's alleged use in distributing child sexual abuse material, facilitating drug trafficking, fraud and other organized crime.

Durov has denied wrongdoing, arguing that Telegram complies with applicable laws and responds to legitimate legal requests from authorities. After spending several months in France as part of the investigation, he returned to Dubai in March, describing his arrest as "absurd."

"The only outcome of my arrest so far has been massive damage to France's image as a free country," he said.

Born in Russia, Durov launched Telegram with his brother in 2013 after leaving VKontakte. Telegram later relocated its headquarters to Dubai, and Durov became a citizen of the United Arab Emirates in 2021 and also obtained French citizenship.

His current whereabouts are unclear, although he said last week that he was in Georgia.