Telegram is harmful and poses a threat to national security. All channels must be registered - Budanov

The head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Kyrylo Budanov, gave an extensive interview to "Radio Khartia." Among various topics, he also discussed how the messaging app Telegram poses a threat to national security.

Kyrylo Budanov believes that Telegram in Ukraine needs strict regulation due to the threat it poses to national security.

“Telegram is harmful. I have never been afraid to say this openly. Telegram is, in our understanding, a real threat to our national security,” stated the head of the GUR.

The head of the GUR also added that Telegram is currently the main source of news and information in Ukraine, having surpassed all other sources in popularity.

At the same time, Kyrylo Budanov expressed that he does not want the messenger to be blocked in Ukraine. He thinks that such an action is “fairly difficult, yet possible.” Instead of blocking it, he proposes full registration for all Telegram channels.

“If you want to broadcast some news, please register, so everyone understands that this channel is registered under Ivan Ivanovich Ivanov, a citizen of the Russian Federation residing in Moscow, or under a citizen of Ukraine. Then that person has personal responsibility for what they post there,” Budanov explained his position.

He added that some channels publish censored materials, not only related to the war. There is currently no responsibility for this, and there should be.

Budanov also touched on the issue of blocking Russian social networks “VKontakte” and “Odnoklassniki.” He stated that conducting a similar block on Telegram is technically more challenging. However, it is still possible.

Regarding the question of whether Twitter is harmful or not, Budanov replied: “It depends on who posts what on it.” But overall, the head of the GUR doesn’t consider X/Twitter harmful, as it’s not a platform widely used by their adversary.

It is worth noting that earlier this year, Ukrainian officials began discussing the idea of fines and government oversight of Telegram's activities. Last month, the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy, a deputy from the "Servant of the People" party, Mykita Poturayev, stated the necessity of blocking Telegram in Ukraine.