The Iranian government may allow the Telegram messenger, which has been blocked in the country since 2018, to resume operations. For this, the platform must fulfill a number of conditions.
A long-standing conflict
The conflict between the Islamic Republic and Telegram founder Pavel Durov began in 2017-2018. Tehran believes that Telegram is used to organize anti-state propaganda and protests, while Durov states that the main goal of the platform is to protect freedom of speech and information.
After mass protests in Iran in late 2017, the government first partially restricted Telegram, and in April 2018, it completely blocked the messenger. Officials justified this by saying that “terrorist acts and riots are coordinated through Telegram.”
Tehran's new demands
Iranian state news agency WANA reports that the following demands have been submitted to Telegram's management for the opening of the messenger:
Restriction of content that incites ethnic and religious hatred and conflict;
Removal of posts based on citizens' complaints;
Cooperation with Iranian courts and law enforcement agencies;
Blocking channels that pose a threat to terrorism and national security;
Guarantees that user data will not be transferred to foreign intelligence agencies.
According to the information, the Iranian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology is holding talks with Telegram representatives. However, the messenger's management has not yet made a public statement.
The demands are not much different from the previous ones
According to experts, the demands put forward today are almost the same as those of 2018. Tehran still wants Telegram not to be used as a platform for organizing protests, "provocative" content to be quickly deleted, and the data of the country's citizens not to be leaked.
Telegram phenomenon in Iran
In 2018, about 50 million of Iran’s approximately 70 million population were Telegram users. The messenger served not only as a means of communication in the country, but also as a business, media and service platform. Local entrepreneurs stated that “in Iran, the Internet almost means Telegram.”
Durov’s position remains unchanged
Telegram founder Pavel Durov has repeatedly stated that he will not bow to censorship and pressure:
“Iran asked us to close channels belonging to peaceful protesters. We refused, and as a result, Telegram was banned there. We are ready to give up some markets to protect a free internet.”
According to observers, since Durov has not deviated from his principled position, it does not seem realistic for Telegram to fulfill all the demands of the Iranian government. However, if a compromise option is found, the company is expected to publicly disclose this agreement in full transparency.
