Pavel Durov: Russia places Telegram founder on terror list, issues arrest warrant

Russia has officially designated Pavel Durov, the founder of the popular messaging service Telegram, as a "terrorist and extremist." The 41-year-old tech billionaire's name was added to a registry maintained by Russia's top financial monitoring authority, Rosfinmonitoring.

The Russian domestic intelligence service, the FSB, cited the use of Telegram by Ukrainian intelligence services as justification for the designation. According to the FSB, the platform has been exploited to recruit Russian citizens for carrying out attacks against the country's infrastructure.

This move follows shortly after Russia issued an international arrest warrant for Durov. The FSB stated that Telegram has refused to remove channels and chatbots that are allegedly being actively utilized by Ukrainian intelligence, as well as terrorist and extremist organizations, to prepare for sabotage and terrorist acts within Russia.

Durov, who is known for his staunch defense of user privacy and encryption on Telegram, has previously clashed with Russian authorities over data access and content moderation demands. The designation and arrest warrant signal a significant escalation in the Kremlin's efforts to exert control over the platform and its founder.