Press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin was pressuring the founder of “Vkontakte” Pavel Durov, did not require the closing pages of the opposition was not going to select the company.
“As the Kremlin can take the company? As the Kremlin could require the closing pages? So we cannot say that the Kremlin had demanded, we can say that the Kremlin called Petrov-Sidorov, for example, or someone else… There must still be more specific, especially if there are such claims. These claims must be backed up with something” — quoted Peskov RIA Novosti.
Pavel Durov responded to the words of the press Secretary of the President of Russia. “Dmitry Peskov partly right, and, if you read my interview, and not their interpretation, words like “the Kremlin picked the network” will not be there. However, Western journalists and their readers, not experienced in the intricacies of Russian political life, names like “Sechin” are synonymous with “Kremlin”,” Durov wrote.
The Creator of “Vkontakte” said that now it doesn’t really matter. He also expressed gratitude to “those forces in Russia that stimulated the transition to a global project from the Russian.
Previously portal Mashable published an article about the Film in which, in particular, said the Kremlin wanted to get him to close the page of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. There is also mention of the persecution Durov in connection with a traffic incident when owned by the founder of “Vkontakte” Mercedes has hit a police officer. “I began to understand that it’s politics,” — quoted edition of the most Durov. The Kremlin “come for me,” stated hero material.
Durov left Russia in April 2014. At the same time he published “Seven reasons not to return to Russia, calling the statement a farewell text. Shortly before he left the post of the General Director of a social network “Vkontakte”.
In April 2013, the company UCP bought 48,01% of shares of “Vkontakte” co-founder of the social network of Vyacheslav Mirilashvili and Lev Leviev, based on an assessment of the entire business at $1.8–2.2 billion
At that time, Durov was the General Director of “Vkontakte”. He stated that the transaction is contrary to the Charter of the company, as other shareholders were not informed of the negotiations. The company Mail.Ru Group, which at that time owned about 40% of “Vkontakte” (later bought another 11,9996% of the General Director of “MegaFon” Ivan Tavrina, increasing its stake to 51,99%), tried to challenge in court the entry of the UCP in social capital. In turn UCP demanded Durov pass in “Vkontakte” the messenger Telegram. However, all these lawsuits terminated today: Mail.Ru Group bought UCP package in Vkontakte for $1.47 billion, increasing its share to 100%.
In April 2015 Durov called successful sale of its share of “Vkontakte” Ivan Taurine, noting that soon after the transaction of the domestic IT market has fallen by about three times. “Those 12% of shares of “Vkontakte” is still not allowed me to influence the Board of Directors of the company, but the proceeds from their sale, thus spared Telegram from the need to attract investors,” he said then.
