An appeal to the dissident right from the Russian opposition about the arrest of Pavel Durov

Hello, my name is Mikhail Svetov.

Six years ago, when Telegram came under attack in Russia, my team and I organized a series of rallies in its defense. It became the biggest political movement in the history of Putin’s Russia, with tens of thousands of people attending our rallies.

Just like what’s happening in France today. In 2017, Putin accused Telegram of helping terrorists and pedophiles and tried to pressure Pavel Durov to provide the FSB with keys to decrypt private messages.

But after months of struggle and rallying, we managed to defend Telegram. It still operates in Russia today, virtually free of censorship. Although it’s in an increasingly precarious position.

Since then, Putin opened a criminal investigation against me, and my entire team was forced into political exile. We won the battle but lost the war.

Because back in 2017, we were naive and thought it was a uniquely Russian problem. We actually thought Putin was a backwater dictator preventing Russia from joining the family of free nations. Unfortunately, we couldn’t have been more wrong.

As it turned out, Putin was the trailblazer. He set the example for the rest of the Western political class with his censorship, destruction of privacy, and surveillance. It turned out, the West was simply trailing behind.

I’m now in exile in Latin America, witnessing the same silencing of people unfolding under Lula’s rule in Brazil. Reading about people getting arrested for tweets in the UK, and watching Pavel Durov get arrested in France. Something even Putin didn’t dare to do at the time.

These are not isolated issues. The political class is waging a global war against the people. It’s not just Pavel who came under attack in France last night; it’s our privacy and freedom of speech.

And of course, they’re not going to stop at Pavel. Just like they didn’t stop at Julian Assange, Kim Dotcom, and Aaron Swartz. Because they’re not after Telegram alone. The entire infrastructure of freedom is under attack.

But not all is yet lost. The reason the left keeps winning is because they are wise enough to fight a global war. They have the Socialist International and a network of propaganda outlets in every single country of the world working in unison against our freedoms. While the right is fractured and barely acknowledges each other’s existence.

It’s a shame that over all these years, nobody put Elon Musk in touch with Pavel Durov. It’s a disaster that the Trump family is not keeping active contact with Javier Milei, Pierre Poilievre, Viktor Orbán, or Geert Wilders. Not just personally, but on an organizational level as well.

It’s outright idiocy that whatever Tommy Robinson, Rafael Lima, and Jimmy Åkesson are doing in their respective countries, they never talk or support each other. And I bet it’s the first time you hear about me or the Russian libertarian movement as well.

The reason the left is winning is because they are fighting a global battle. They understand the importance of networking. They have the Socialist International, the WEF, and a million other organizations that help them organize and collaborate. Meanwhile, the right has nothing.

Until we stop ignoring each other’s existence, we will keep losing. Because unlike the dissident right, the left actually cares who wins the elections in other countries. They throw their money and influence to support their preferred politicians all over the world. Meanwhile, the right is navel-gazing and refuses to engage in politics beyond their immediate vicinity.

I implore the global right to apply their resources to support Pavel Durov. We have what it takes to save Telegram and finally start winning.

Some of you are journalists; keep writing about the prosecution of Pavel Durov and what it means for privacy and freedom of speech.

Some of you were elected to parliament. Start a pressure campaign and demand an explanation from the French government.

Some of you are activists. Organize a rally in defense of Telegram. Before Elon Musk took over Twitter, Telegram was the only refuge for the dissident right, from Nicholas Fuentes to Tommy Robinson. Now Telegram needs your help.

If you don’t have personal influence, I beg you to write to your local representative and ask them to speak up in defense of Pavel Durov. Or ask your local newspaper or favorite blogger to talk about what the French government is doing to Telegram and why it matters to all of us.

At the very least, help this message spread and reach the people I mention as well as independent journalists around the world. Russell Brand, Ben Shapiro, Andrew Torba, Glenn Greenwald, Steven Crowder, Ezra Levant, and independent journalists from non-English speaking countries. Having their support will make a world of difference.

Unfortunately, there’s nothing I and the Russian community can do to defend Telegram anymore. We lost our country and our freedom. But it’s not too late for the rest of the world.

Help us. You know just as well as I do that once Pavel Durov is defeated, Elon Musk will be next. And then there will be no one left to protect our freedoms anymore.