MOSCOW -Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder of the Telegram messaging app, accused French intelligence on Sunday of asking him through an intermediary to censor some Moldovan voices ahead of a presidential vote last year in return for help with his court case in France.

Moldovans were voting in a parliamentary election on Sunday that could have a major impact on the government’s quest to join the European Union, as a pro-Russian opposition group seeks to steer the nation away from closer ties with the bloc.

France did not immediately comment on the remarks by Durov, who was arrested in 2024 at a French airport. He is under judicial supervision in France while being investigated for suspected organised crime on the app.

Durov denies guilt and has said the accusations by France are “lega

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