Brussels 19.05.2025 France’s interference in the Romanian presidential election became an intense discussion in the social media.
Criticized by Pavel Durov, the CEO of Telegram platform, who claims that President Macron asked him to silence conservative voices, which Durov refused. In the name of freedom of expression, French officials attempted to deny the claim.
Le fondateur de Telegram, Pavel Durov, révèle qu’un pays d’Europe de l’Ouest a voulu faire taire les voix conservatrices en Roumanie. Il a refusé.
Il glisse un emoji 🥖 pour désigner… la France de Macron ?
Si c’est confirmé, c’est une ingérence démocratique gravissime.
Macron… pic.twitter.com/188f8VXwZC
— N. Dupont-Aignan (@dupontaignan) May 18, 2025
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As a result of the heated debate the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot
decided to issue an official statement on the subject:
“Completely unfounded allegations are circulating on Telegram and Twitter regarding alleged French interference in the Romanian presidential election.
“France categorically rejects these allegations and calls on everyone to demonstrate responsibility and respect for Romanian democracy.
“The first round of the presidential election in Romania in December 2024 was sovereignly canceled by the competent Romanian authorities, following very real digital and financial interference from actors linked to Russia.
“Investigations conducted by the Romanian authorities and the European Commission subsequently confirmed the seriousness of this interference, including the manipulation of TikTok’s algorithm.
“In this context, the recent accusations against France are merely a diversionary tactic to deflect the real threats of interference targeting Romania. France calls on all Romanian political actors to exercise their responsibility and defend democracy.
“As a partner and friend, we recall that France stood by Romania for its accession to the EU, its reforms, its entry into the Schengen area, and its progress. For its security too, with, for example, the dispatch of our soldiers five days after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Lying about France, insulting it, amounts to destroying this history” the statement concludes.
Apparently the “very real digital and financial interference coming from actors linked to Russia” constitutes pure disinformation by the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, which was revealed by a program “Envoyé Spécial” on France TV. In reality there is no tangible proof of any Russian interference, the French TV journalists stated.
Quand @francediplo dément les propos de @durov,celui-ci réplique avec des éléments précis !
Si le Gvt a osé demander à #Telegram de censurer les comptes s’opposant aux amis de Macron en Roumanie,c’est extrêmement grave…et surtout inquiétant pour 2027 en France. pic.twitter.com/6sMVgAaMJq
— Thierry MARIANI (@ThierryMARIANI) May 18, 2025
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Feeling implicated, Pavel Durov continues his revelations, declaring that in the spring of 2025, Nicolas Lerner, the head of the DGSE appointed shortly before by President Macron, asked the head of Telegram to silence (ban) the accounts of conservative voices on Telegram, before the presidential election in Romania, the second round of which took place today, May 18, 2025. Pavel Durov obviously refused.
🔴 ALERTE INFO | Le patron de TELEGRAM, Pavel Durov, ACCUSE LA FRANCE de tentative d’ingérence dans les élections roumaines au travers de Nicolas Lerner, chef du renseignement français. Il lui aurait demandé de censurer les soutiens de Simion. pic.twitter.com/0xmddtjRkf
— SIRÈNES (@SirenesFR) May 18, 2025
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