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On Aug. 29, French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a press conference during his diplomatic visit to Serbia. During the televised visit, the French leader told reporters that he did not invite Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov to the country, nor was he aware of his trip to France. According to a translated version of Macron’s response, the French president said:

"As far as I'm concerned, I was absolutely unaware of Mr. Durov's coming to France. And this is quite normal because I have not been aware of the coming of nationals from all over the world whether they have French nationality or not."
The French president then reiterated that Durov’s case would be handled by the “independent action of the French justice system.”

Macron has faced widespread, international backlash for the decision to arrest Durov. He maintains that the decision to detain the tech entrepreneur was not political.