Moscow moves to throttle Telegram as Kremlin pushes its own messaging app

Russia has moved to further restrict Telegram, the popular messaging platform, as users across the country report widespread service disruptions.

Russia’s communications regulator, Roskomnadzor, confirmed Tuesday that it has deliberately “slowed down” the app, which has nearly 90 million local users, citing the company’s failure to comply with Russian law.

According to state media, a Moscow court has opened seven cases against Telegram since the start of 2026 for allegedly refusing to delete content authorities say calls for “extremist” activity or contains pornographic material. The platform reportedly faces fines totaling more than $820,000.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in a recent interview that Russia remains in contact with the company, but the restrictions will stay in place as long as the alleged violations continue.

Russian users began reporting widespread Telegram disruptions earlier this week, according to data from internet monitoring service Downdetector. Nearly 15 Russian regions have experienced significant slowdowns over the past two days, local internet analysts said.

Pavel Durov, the founder of the Dubai-based company, called the new restrictions “an authoritarian move” and accused Moscow of trying to force Russians onto a state-controlled messaging app “built for surveillance and political censorship.”

Durov compared Russia’s actions to Iran’s ban on Telegram, imposed in an effort to push users toward a government-backed alternative. Despite the ban, most Iranians continued to use Telegram through circumvention tools, he said.

Russia has previously attempted to block Telegram. In 2018, a court ordered the platform banned after it refused to hand over encryption keys to the Federal Security Service (FSB). The ban was lifted in 2020 after Telegram signaled a willingness to help counter terrorism and extremism.

More recently, in August, Roskomnadzor announced restrictions on calls via Telegram and WhatsApp, saying the services were frequently used by fraudsters to recruit Russian citizens into “sabotage and terrorist activities.”

To replace these apps, Russian officials are promoting a national messaging platform called Max, a government-backed service modeled on China’s WeChat and developed by the creator of the social network VKontakte.

The latest Telegram restrictions, however, have drawn criticism inside Russia — including from state officials and members of the military.

Authorities in the Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine and frequently comes under attack, warned that further Telegram disruptions could pose safety risks. The region’s governor said that during wartime, many residents rely on Telegram for news and emergency updates, and delays could slow the spread of critical alerts.

Pro-war military bloggers also criticized the move. Telegram has become deeply embedded in Russia’s war effort: military units often use the platform to coordinate logistics, crowdsource supplies, communicate with supporters and share frontline updates.

Peskov dismissed those concerns, saying military communications are not conducted through messaging apps and that any impact on front-line operations would likely be limited.

The new restrictions come amid a broader wave of internet disruptions across Russia. Since May, regional authorities have repeatedly cut mobile internet access, citing efforts to counter Ukrainian drone attacks.

In October, Russia imposed a mandatory 24-hour mobile internet blackout for anyone entering the country with a foreign SIM card, causing major inconvenience for travelers, expatriates and cross-border businesses.

Most major Western platforms — including Facebook, Instagram and Discord — are already inaccessible in Russia without a VPN.