Pavel Durov, Telegram’s founder, faced detention at Le Bourget airport outside Paris on 24 August as part of a sweeping judicial investigation launched last month, and was released earlier on Wednesday after four days of questioning, had been in contact with French counterintelligence agents, according to the French newspaper Libération.
During the interrogation in Paris, Durov was in contact with representatives of the French counterintelligence agency, the Directorate General of Internal Security (DGSI), Libération reported, citing sources close to the investigation. Despite, the newspaper says it would be inappropriate for Pavel Durov to reveal information that constitutes a military secret.
In a conversation with DGSI counterintelligence officers, Durov allegedly agreed to share information through specially created communication channels, which included a hotline and a special email address, for the purpose of combating terrorism. According to him, sharing data through these channels helped prevent several terrorist attacks.
Apart from, after the arrest, Durov agreed to co-operate with French law enforcers and even provided them with his mobile phone with the necessary passwords for them to examine, according to the newspaper.
The newspaper went on to note some details regarding Durov’s French passport. The decision to grant French citizenship to the head of Telegram came from French President Emmanuel Macron personally, according to the newspaper. During his visit to Belgrade, Macron said at a press conference that he considered granting citizenship to Durov completely justified.
Following the detention of the entrepreneur, French authorities immediately notified the Elysee Palace, leading Macron to discuss the situation with Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the head of the United Arab Emirates, on 25 August. Macron said on Monday that Durov’s arrest was not a political move but part of an independent investigation.
