February 18, 2026
Russian official claims Telegram crackdown was motivated by “foreign intelligence services’ access to correspondence”
Earlier today, Russia’s Minister of Digital Development, Maksut Shadayev, outlined the reasons behind the slowing of the Telegram messaging app in the country, claiming the move was tied to the service’s “systematic and constant violation of the requirements of federal law
TL;DR
- Russia is slowing down the Telegram messaging app.
- Reasons cited include systematic violation of federal laws and failure to remove prohibited content.
- Concerns were raised about foreign intelligence services gaining access to user correspondence on Telegram.
- Telegram allegedly failed to comply with requirements to store user data within Russia.
- The Russian state communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, is involved in the process.
- Lawmakers also claimed Telegram removes posts selectively.
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