Kirill Budanov says he doesn’t advocate banning the messaging app but rather wants to deanonymize people behind popular channels

Telegram poses a real threat to Ukraine’s national security, the chief of that country’s Main Directorate of Military Intelligence, Kirill Budanov, has stated. The official acknowledged that the encrypted instant-messaging platform has become the prime source of information in the country, “outperforming everything else.”

Telegram was created by Russian tech entrepreneurs Pavel and Nikolay Durov back in 2013. One of its unique features is that it allows users to create public broadcast channels and discussion groups.

In an interview with Charter Radio station on Saturday, Budanov said that he does not advocate “simply shutting down” the messaging app. According to the intelligence chief, while quite difficult to implement, such a ban is doable, though.

“I call for all Telegram channels” to be obliged to establish a physical presence in Ukraine, Budanov declared.

“If you want to, so to speak, disseminate some news, please register, so that everyone understands that this channel is registered by Ivanov Ivan Ivanovich, a Russian citizen, who resides in Moscow,” the Ukrainian official explained.

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He argued that this way Telegram channel administrators would bear responsibility for the content posted on it.

According to Budanov, some channels publish “not really printable materials,” and not only with respect to the ongoing military conflict with Russia.

He made similar remarks in late March, noting at the same time that Telegram is a useful tool for Ukrainian secret services in spreading their narratives in Russian-controlled territories.
Around the same time, a group of Ukrainian lawmakers proposed a bill to “regulate” Telegram. It included, among other things, a requirement for any messaging apps operating in Ukraine to set up a registered office in the country – unless they are headquartered in the EU – and to disclose their ownership structure and funding to the government.

The founder and CEO of Telegram, Pavel Durov, was detained after landing at Paris-Le Bourget Airport on August 24 and released on bail several days later. The Russian-born entrepreneur, who is also a citizen of France, the UAE, and the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis, was charged on 12 counts, including complicity in distributing child porn, drug dealing and money laundering. The charges cite Telegram’s lax moderation rules that presumably allow for the widespread use of the platform by criminals.

Telegram is no stranger to legal problems, with authorities in numerous countries, including Russia, having taken issue with its policies. It has been banned in several jurisdictions over its refusal to cooperate with local governments.