The press secretary of the President of Russia, Dmitry Peskov, dispelled rumors about a possible blocking or slowing down of the Telegram messenger. Journalists asked if the Russian authorities have such plans.
No, I don't know anything about the existence of such plans at all.
Let us remind you that in June, the State Duma adopted a law that initiates the creation of a national messenger — a multifunctional application. It will combine the functions of a messenger, government services, digital identification and signatures, as well as educational chats. It is assumed that we are talking about the Max service from VK, which is positioned as a safe alternative to foreign platforms.
Against the background of Max's promotion in Russia, discussions about a possible blocking of Telegram have intensified again. Some experts and officials do not rule out that restrictions on Pavel Durov's messenger may be used to accelerate the transition of users to a domestic service. The first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Anton Gorelkin, in response to this, stated that the messenger is not in danger if it complies with Russian legislation.
Read more on the topic:
Telegram has denied ties with the FSB
A new national messenger is being promoted in Russia, will it replace Telegram?
Owners of Telegram channels will be required to pay taxes for advertising