In a recent column, John Thornhill of the Financial Times explored the story of Pavel Durov and his messaging platform, Telegram, which has become a crucial tool for free speech in repressive countries. However, Thornhill argued that Durov has struggled to distinguish between the demands of authoritarian regimes, which can be rightfully resisted, and those of “democratic countries,” which he believes should be followed. Thornhill criticized Telegram for not providing transparency on why it is no longer blocked in Russia and for not enabling end-to-end encryption by default.