Telegram Defies Kremlin
April 6, 2026
Another dinobaby post. No AI unless it is an image. This dinobaby is not Grandma Moses, just Grandpa Arnold.
Editor’s Note: We’re still struggling with the blocks on our Telegram Notes’ posts. The new service with the former content and the censored content will be in a few days. You won’t believe the baloney the outfits blocking my content served me and my team. I am a dinobaby and 82, and I am amused with those who want only certain information available. For now, I find it revealing that there are entities who want what one young whiz kid told me about my write ups: “Your stuff is written by AI.” That’s good to know because it demonstrates that smart software, like some censors, are not without the capacity to make errors.
A news organization with a snappy tagline published “Telegram to Adapt to Russa Restrictions, Pavel Durov Says.” That information source is the Saudi Gazette. The article reports:
Telegram founder Pavel Durov said Saturday the messaging platform will adapt to restrictions in Russia, making its traffic harder to detect and block. In a statement, Durov said 65 million Russians continue to use Telegram daily via virtual private network (VPN) apps, with more than 50 million sending messages despite authorities slowing down the service. He said efforts to ban VPNs have pushed users toward workarounds rather than reducing usage.
The question is, “What does adapt mean?” Will the underlying more than 13-year-old plumbing be tweaked to deliver what the current government authorities demands? Or, does Pavel Durov, the GOAT of Russian startups, mean that the users of Telegram will adopt workflows that get around the crackdown on Telegram.
This humorous illustration shows a government dignitary commanding a French poodle coincidentally named Pavel. The dog has followed the command “Sit.” Now the handler wants a more sophisticated demonstration of compliance. Thanks, Venice.ai. Not a Borzoi, but good enough.
As Telegram Notes has documented, suggestions gave way to orders to adopt the Kremlin-approved messaging app Max. I think of Max as Palantir-lite, but that’s just my mental shorthand at work. Maybe Uighur-Lite is a better phrase.
The article revealed that Telegram’s Russian user community is smaller than some metrics firms have reported. The 65 million number is about 30 million below some of the interesting estimates offered on Telegram and in Russia social media. If the Kremlin achieves its goal of having Pavel Durov obey the Kremlin’s commands, Telegram’s user count may not take this hit. On the other hand, if the Telegram users do not comply, then Telegram can add to its list of serious problems losing 10 percent of its user base.
The message Pavel Durov output consists of two parts in my opinion. The first post is that “Pavel Durov Harshly Criticized Apple.” TON News on April 1, 2026, said:
Durov directly hinted that it’s not about security, but about money and the desire to preserve their [sic] market. And it all looks pretty bad when a big company simply adjusts to the rules that benefit it.
Then TON News reported that “Telegram Has Repelled Roskomnadzor’s Attack.” Telegram updated its Messenger app and the behind-the-code systems to change how ClientHello is identified. The result is that the Kremlin’s message inspection system is now less effective.
According to Telegram News:
… Durov… stated that even after all the blocking attempts, over 50 million people in Russia still use Telegram every day via VPN.
Telegram News’s view is that Pavel Durov will play a cat-and-mouse game. Durov, however, is in France unless the French judiciary grants him a hall pass to leave that country to visit his office in Dubai, UAE. Will the French government announce a trial data or just keep kicking the ball of hefty red tape down the autoroute? Will Pavel Durov find a solution to this Kremlin anti-Telegram stance, his firm’s AI woes, and the revenue challenges the company faces?
On the AI front, the Chinese Qwen model deployed to Telegram Messenger “edit,” the Chinese system changes what the user typed to conform to the political stance of the Chinese government. A Messenger user may want to be careful with wording that says, “Taiwan is an independent country.” Qwen knows that Taiwan is part of mainland China.
Another niggling issue for Mr. Durov is the possibility that two publicly traded companies could collapse or be de-listed from NASDAQ. With the Iran War, the evangelical Gateway Conference for the crypto faithful has been postponed.
What are the workarounds? Some Russians may live near a border town in Lithuania. Snag a SIM card from that country and connect to Telegram. Others may have access to a Starlink-type device. Having one on the roof of a Lada could attract some attention. A person could land a job in a Russian security service or an outfit like Global Network Management and have non-restricted access.
Telegram finds itself bogged down with challenges a Zen master might have difficulty reducing to a pleasant background hum.
PS. To read Telegram News, one must install Telegram Messenger, sign up for Telegram News, and receive the content when it appears in the chat interface. If this does not make sense, you need a copy of my Telegram Labyrinth book. For information, write kentmaxwell at proton do me.
Stephen E Arnold, April 6, 2026
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