Arrest of Telegram Founder Could Hurt Public Understanding of the Ukraine War

“On the Russian side, Telegram is used by all levels of the Russian ministry of defense, from the senior officials down to specific units who report on their progress, the Russian government officials, by regional officials, by volunteers, by private citizens, and many others,” said Samuel Bendett, an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security and an adviser at the CNA Corporation.

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Bendett said conflict-related information that comes from the site carries a specific, pro-Russian point of view, but it still provides an important window into how some of the war’s most vocal supporters perceive events on the ground.

“The platform’s significance was underscored by a campaign by the Russian government in 2023 to co-opt some independent Russian military bloggers and correspondents, and to influence others to be a lot less critical of the Kremlin and of the ministry of defense,” he told Defense One.

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Still, Bendett said, “It’s not clear exactly what Durov’s arrest will mean for Telegram going forward, and what it means for specific sources and or specific origins of data that is populated there about the war.”

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