France's Macron says giving Telegram CEO Durov French citizenship was a good thing

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday defended his decision to give special fast-track citizenship to Telegram messaging app CEO Pavel Durov, who is now under preliminary charges in France over alleged criminal activity on his popular platform.

Macron also said he was unaware that Durov was coming to France before his surprise weekend arrest, and had no plans to meet with him.

Free-speech advocates, far-right figures and authoritarian governments around the world have spoken out in Durov’s defense and criticized French authorities over the case. Durov was freed on 5 million euro bail but barred from leaving France and ordered to report to a police station twice a week pending further investigation.

French prosecutors accuse Durov of complicity in allowing drug trafficking and sharing of sexual images of children on Telegram, and of refusing to cooperate with authorities investigating illegal activity on the app.

Durov’s lawyer David-Olivier Kaminski told French media, “it’s totally absurd to think that the person in charge of a social network could be implicated in criminal acts that don’t concern him, directly or indirectly.”

The case has called attention to the challenges of policing illegal activity online — and to the Russia-born Durov’s unusual biography and multiple passports.

Speaking at a news conference while on a visit to Serbia, Macron said France supports freedom of expression and the liberty of entrepreneurs. He said that approving Durov’s request for French nationality — like high-profile sports stars, performers and others who contribute to France’s wealth and learn French — was ‘’good for our country.’’

He also mentioned Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel, who like Durov won French citizenship not through the normal difficult and bureaucratic process but via a special process for ‘’merited foreigners.’’

French satirical and investigative newspaper Le Canard Enchaine reported that Durov told police upon his arrest Saturday that he was planning to meet with Macron.

Macron denied that. ‘’I was absolutely not aware of Mr. Durov’s arrival in France,’’ Macron said. ‘’It is false that I offered any kind of invitation to him.’’

His arrest was ‘’an independent act of French justice,’’ he added.