A recent report from the independent Russian news outlet Important Stories suggests that Pavel Durov, co-founder and CEO of Telegram, has entered Russia more than 50 times between 2015 and 2021, contradicting his public statements regarding his travel history.
Pavel Durov’s Leaked Data and Travel Patterns
According to the August 27 report, the data about Durov’s travels was leaked from the Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB). The leaked data was reportedly made public on or before August 20 and was concealed again by August 26. Important Stories claims to have corroborated the data by consulting with an investigator linked to Alexei Navalny, the late Russian opposition leader. The report indicates that Durov did not attempt to hide his travels, frequently flying on Aeroflot commercial flights between St. Petersburg and various European cities, as well as using Russian Railways to travel to Helsinki, Finland.
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Contradictions in Public Statements
Durov, who is of Russian descent and co-founded the popular social network VKontakte in 2006, left Russia in April 2014 after refusing to comply with the FSB’s demands to hand over personal data related to Ukrainian protesters. While he publicly stated that he has not returned to Russia since his departure, Important Stories claims he visited multiple times between 2015 and 2017, as well as between 2020 and 2021. The only period he did not visit Russia was between 2018 and 2020. In an April interview with Tucker Carlson, Durov asserted that he avoids traveling to places inconsistent with Telegram’s values, including Russia, stating, “I don’t go to any of the big geopolitical powers, countries like China or Russia or even the US.”
Conclusion
The revelations about Durov’s travel history raise questions about his previous statements and the potential implications for his role as the head of Telegram. Durov was arrested in France on August 24, facing accusations of failing to adequately moderate illegal activities on the platform, which authorities claim has been used for drug trafficking, fraud, and organized crime. As the situation unfolds, it remains to be seen how these reports will affect both Durov’s standing and Telegram’s operations in the future.
