PARIS, Aug 27 (Reuters) – The United Arab Emirates and Russia have submitted requests for consular access to Telegram messenger CEO Pavel Durov, who was arrested in Paris for allegedly refusing to cooperate with an investigation into crimes related to the app.
The UAE Foreign Ministry said early Tuesday it was “closely monitoring” Durov’s case and had “called on the French government to urgently provide him with all consular services,” Xinhua reported, citing Russian media outlet TASS.
According to Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, the Russian embassy in Paris had earlier sent a letter to the French foreign ministry requesting a consular meeting with Durov.
Durov was born in Russia and holds French, Russian, Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis and United Arab Emirates citizenship.
Paris prosecutor Laure Vecuot said on Monday that Durov was arrested in connection with a judicial investigation into 12 criminal charges, including those related to cybercrime.
“Telegram complies with EU law, including the Digital Services Act, and our moderation is within industry standards and is constantly being improved,” Telegram said in a statement on Sunday night.
“Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently to Europe,” the company said.
“It is absurd to claim that the platforms or their owners are responsible for the misuse of their platforms.”
Following the arrest of the Telegram CEO, Elon Musk, owner of US social media platform X, and former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden both condemned his arrest on Sunday.
Under French law, Durov could be held for 96 hours until Wednesday evening.
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