NNA -nbsp;The Kremlin warned France on Thursday not to turn a criminal case againstnbsp;Telegram founder Pavel Durov into quot;political persecution.quot;
Russia, which has led an unprecedented crackdown on political opponents during its Ukraine offensive, has painted Durov#39;s surprise arrest in Paris earlier this week as politically motivated.
France has charged Russian-born Durov — who also has French citizenship — on several counts of failing to curb extremist and illegal content on the popular social media platform.
quot;The main thing is for what is happening in France not to run into political persecution,quot; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
quot;Of course we consider him a Russian citizen and as much as possible we will be ready to provide assistance,quot; he added.
quot;We will be watching what happens next.quot; — AFP
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