Lavrov expresses strong concern over Telegram founder Pavel Durovs arrest in France.

Russian top diplomat have expressed strong concerns following the arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in France.

Latest Updates, most on previous last videos this morning, here's more:

A court in France is set to decide on Wednesday whether to launch a formal investigation into Durov, with a decision expected by 9:00 PM Moscow time.

And:

Durov has been in custody for 96 hours, which is the maximum duration for preliminary detention, Reuters reports.

As the agency highlights, the initiation of a formal investigation in France does not imply guilt and may not necessarily lead to a trial; the process could take years.

The Paris Prosecutor's Office confirmed that Durov has been transferred to the court for questioning, where he may be charged.

After Durov's arrest, Telegram rose from 18th to 8th place in the ranking of the best apps in the US.

In France, Telegram rose to first place in the Social Networks category in the App Store and became the third most popular app in France.

In addition, Telegram took second place in the ranking of social networks in the US.

and:

WSJ reports that in 2018 Macron offered Durov to move Telegram's headquarters to France during a dinner they had together

Adding latest:

The French Foreign Ministry has complaints about the procedure for Pavel Durov to obtain French citizenship, Le Monde writes.

According to the publication, when considering the request of the Telegram founder, the responsible service of the Foreign Ministry considered that the conditions for issuing a passport to an "outstanding citizen" were not met.

It was noted that he confirmed his knowledge of the French language, but also had to show that he contributes to increasing the "influence of France". Usually, as the publication says, high-ranking officials request the naturalization of influential foreigners in order to benefit from the granting of citizenship.

The publication writes that Durov and Macron met several times, and this was mentioned in Durov's application for naturalization. At the same time, Macron's entourage told the newspaper that there were only "one or two" meetings, refusing to specify the purpose of their holding.

Latest Update:

The investigating judge handling the case in which Pavel Durov was detained may continue questioning him on the evening of August 28, the Paris prosecutor's office told TASS.

"His custody with the police effectively ended this afternoon. Since then, the police can no longer question him regarding the facts he is suspected of, and only the investigating judge may interrogate him this evening," the source reported.

At the same time, the source did not respond to the question of how long Durov could remain in custody, given that his 96-hour detention was supposed to end at 9:00 PM Moscow time.