Emmanuel Macron finally admits he gave Telegram chief French citizenship
President’s team initially said the foreign ministry made the call to grant Russian-born Pavel Durov a French passport.
BELGRADE — President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday night took full responsibility for giving Telegram messaging app CEO Pavel Durov French citizenship — days after a presidential spokesperson told POLITICO it was a foreign ministry decision.
Macron also brushed off criticism over granting Russian-born Durov citizenship, a decision which he said was made in 2018, adding that it was a conscious choice by the government to attract athletes, artists and innovators.
French police arrested Durov last weekend in a criminal case which has caused a diplomatic firestorm thanks to the Telegram chief's connections to Russia and the UAE, and a cultural row over people's right to free speech on the internet.
"I gave Mr. Durov French citizenship, who learned French, as I gave to Mr. [Evan] Spiegel, an American entrepreneur, as I gave citizenship to some athletes and artists, and I think this is something that is very good for our country and I will continue to do so,” Macron said during an unrelated trip to the Serbian capital Belgrade on Thursday.
