Russia seeks arrest of Telegram's Durov over 'terrorism complicity' claims
Russian-born Durov, a serial tech founder who has lived outside Russia for years and holds French and United Arab Emirates passports, has frequently clashed with the Russian authorities, as Moscow has tightened its grip on the internet.
His Telegram messenger service is one of the country's main communications platforms, and officials have repeatedly tried to block access or thwart its success in a bid to pressure Durov into handing over user data, or to push Russians towards using an unencrypted, state-backed alternative. Founder and CEO of Telegram Pavel Durov delivers a keynote speech during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, in February 2016.
The FSB security service said it had launched international search proceedings for Durov, who is also Telegram's CEO.
"An international wanted notice has been issued ... for the head of the Telegram administration, P. Durov," it said in a statement.
It was unclear what kind of wanted notice Russia had issued and whether other countries or law enforcement bodies would accept or comply with it.
Lawyers for Durov, 41, declined to comment when contacted by French news agency AFP.
"Pavel Durov does not wish to comment at this stage," Telegram told AFP.
Durov, who is active on Telegram, did not immediately comment on the FSB allegations.
Who is Pavel Durov, the enigmatic French-Russian boss of Telegram?
Moscow frequently targets political enemies with charges of supporting "terrorism" or "extremism", including those who have left the country.
The FSB alleged Telegram had been used as a recruitment platform for Ukrainian security services.
It says Telegram failed to remove a popular dating bot that, according to Moscow, is being used by Ukrainian special services to draw young Russians "into terrorist and sabotage activities".
According to the statement, 46 Russian citizens between the ages of 12 and 22 who used Leo Match Bot, which is banned in Russia, have been arrested since July 2025 for assaulting law enforcement officers and carrying out acts of sabotage against energy and transportation infrastructure. Telegram's use is restricted by Russian authorities.
It says they were all contacted on this bot by agents of the Ukrainian special services posing as young women, who then pressured them to attack police officers and set fire to infrastructure sites.
Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of using social media to recruit people to support them in the war.
Durov has lived in both Dubai and France. In May 2022, after obtaining French citizenship he changed his name from Pavel Durov to "Paul Du Rove,” according to France's Journal Officiel .
In 2024 he was arrested by French police on charges related to the distribution of illegal content, but was later released on bail. He left France after authorities there lifted a travel ban. France's Journal Officiel of 12 May, 2022, which declares the official name change of Pavel Durov.
Born in Saint Petersburg, President Vladimir Putin's home city, Durov founded VKontakte, a social media site widely known as "Russia's Facebook".
He was essentially forced out of the company as it came under pressure from the authorities in the mid-2010s and founded Telegram, which quickly became one of the most used online services in Russia and easily thwarted a years-long attempt by Moscow's internet authorities to block access inside the country.
This year, the VKontakte social network, now controlled by the state and known as VK, has been pushing the government-backed messenger Max, urging Russians to switch from Telegram and WhatsApp.
Durov has criticised the platform as "a state-controlled app built for surveillance and political censorship".
Terrorism material
Australia's cyber safety watchdog took court action on Thursday against Telegram, alleging the global messaging platform had failed to remove terrorism material.
Under Australia's online safety law, Telegram faces a maximum penalty of up to AU$54.6 million (€32 million) for failing to take timely action after Australian users reported ten items of pro-terror and violent material.
Australia's eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said on Thursday that the watchdog would allege Telegram had failed to remove pro-terror material such as videos of terrorist executions and mass shootings, including "some of the most notorious acts of known extremist violence in recent history", despite being put on notice.
This included content linked to the live-streamed 2019 Christchurch mosque shootings and a 2022 Buffalo mass shooting in New York, she said.
Court documents lodged by the eSafety Commissioner said Australian users had flagged 12 instances of such material between 27 September and 5 October 2025.
(with newswires)