Verifying claims France asked Telegram to ban Romanian Conservatives

Euronews

21-05-2025

Radio Schuman spoke with water and drought expert Niko Wanders as much of Europe is buckling under a prolonged period of drought. He voiced "serious" concerns regarding water scarcity in Europe in the longer term, and discussed what people can do to mitigate the problem.
We also look at a meeting between European foreign ministers and those from the African Union as the EU seeks partners elsewhere in the face of the uncertain transatlantic relationship. And finally, how do Western Europeans feel about their countries developing independent nuclear weapons?
This episode of Radio Schuman is hosted and produced by Lauren Walker. Audio editing by David Brodheim. Music by Alexandre Jas.
Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov has alleged that France's intelligence chief asked him to "silence" Romanian conservative voices by banning them from his messaging app ahead of Sunday's presidential run-off, triggering a wave of disinformation online.
Durov made the claims on social media the morning after Nicușor Dan, a pro-European Liberal, beat ultraconservative George Simion to the Romanian presidency in a tense second round vote.
Simion has since requested that the Romanian Constitutional Court annul the second-round result, citing 'irrefutable evidence' of meddling from France, Moldova and others. Durov has said he would be willing to "testify" in favour of Simion's claims.
Euroverify reached out to Telegram asking for confirmation of the authenticity of Durov's statements and evidence of his allegations, but did not receive a reply.
No evidence has yet emerged to suggest Durov's claims are true, and France has categorically rejected the allegations.
In a statement, the French Foreign Ministry described the claims as "completely unfounded" and a "diversionary maneuver from the real threats of interference targeting Romania."
France's foreign intelligence service, known as DGSE, has also strongly refuted the claims.
But DGSE acknowledged it had been in contact with Durov "on several occasions" to remind him "of his company's responsibilities, and his own personal responsibilities, in terms of preventing terrorist and child pornography threats."
Last August, Durvov, who is Russian-born but holds French citizenship, was detained by French authorities amid a probe into allegations of fraud, drug trafficking, organised crime, promotion of terrorism and cyberbullying on Telegram.
He has since been under strict legal control and is forbidden to leave France without authorisation.
Telegram was founded by Durov and his eldest brother Nikolai in 2013, and has been championed by journalists and activists for its strong encryption and security.
But the app has recently come under scrutiny for the spread of illegal content.
French and Belgian prosecutors are currently teaming up to probe Telegram's role in allowing the spread of illicit content, including child abuse images and terrorist propaganda.
The app has dodged being subject to the European Union's strictest rules under its digital rulebook, the Digital Services Act (DSA).
Telegram claims it has fewer than 45 million active monthly users in the EU, the threshold for being closely monitored by the European Commission.
Romania's presidential election was re-run in May after it was dramatically annulled back in November when a little-known ultra-nationalist with mystical leanings, Călin Georgescu, won an unexpected first-round victory.
The Romanian Constitutional Court declassified intelligence reports that claimed a "state actor," believed to be Russia, was behind Georgescu's successful TikTok campaign.
No undeniable public evidence has yet emerged to firmly confirm Russia's hand behind Georgescu's campaign.
Georgescu was barred from the re-run, sparking controversy and outrage among his supporters at home and abroad.
US vice-president JD Vance was among the prominent voices lambasting the Romanian Court's decision, in a blistering speech at the Munich Security Conference in February.
Last December, Euroverify detected and debunked TikTok disinformation campaigns falsely accusing European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen of personally intervening to cancel the vote.
While the European Commission has opened a probe under the Digital Services Act (DSA) into TikTok's alleged role in Georgescu's campaign, there is no evidence to suggest the EU executive had any stake in the domestic judicial decision to annul the November vote.
Analysts have warned that Romania is particularly vulnerable to disinformation and foreign interference around key ballots.
Romania's foreign, interior and defence ministries have accused Russia of orchestrating a propaganda campaign that claimed French troops stationed in Romania had been dressed in Romanian gendarmerie uniforms to interfere in the country's election.
Belgian authorities have formally requested the European Parliament to revoke the immunity of several MEPs in connection with an investigation into alleged corruption and influence peddling associated with the Chinese technology company Huawei.
The request pertains to five parliamentarians: three affiliated with the European People's Party (EPP), one representing the Socialists & Democrats (S&D), and one from Renew Europe.
A probe into the allegations commenced two months ago following searches carried out in the offices of the European Parliament.
The Belgian Prosecutor's Office has filed charges against eight individuals, alleging suspicions of money laundering, involvement in an organised criminal enterprise, and active corruption.
The accusations against the MEPs pertain to their alleged involvement in corrupt practices in return for lobbying efforts on behalf of Huawei and endorsing legislation advantageous to the company.
While the complete list of MEPs involved in the investigation has yet to be released, a number of parliamentarians came forward and confirmed that a request to revoke their immunity was filed.
Italian lawmaker Salvatore de Meo (EPP), Maltese MEP Daniel Attard (S&D) and Bulgarian parliamentarian Nikola Minchev (Renew Europe) have all confirmed they were targeted by Belgian authorities.
'This is related to the investigation into my former assistant. The Belgian prosecution has not made any specific accusations against me, but wants to check whether anything improper may have taken place,' said Minchev.
Minchev says that he attended a football match, and the tickets were sourced by an individual affiliated with his former assistant, who had links to Huawei. The Bulgarian MEP denied any knowledge of who provided the tickets and has in turn requested that his immunity be lifted himself.
'The Belgian authorities want to verify whether anything inappropriate occurred. That's why I'm calling for my immunity to be lifted as quickly as possible, so the matter can be clarified and it becomes clear that I have nothing to do with any unauthorised or illegal activity."
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola is expected to officially announce the names of MEPs under investigation in the opening of a plenary session on Wednesday.