Ukraine has tools to influence Telegram founder Pavel Durov to restrict the operation of specific channels on the territory of Ukraine. This was stated by Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation, during a telethon.

"In general, I can say that there are tools to influence Pavel Durov directly so that he deletes a specific channel for the territory of Ukraine at least. Accordingly, this toolkit was already used in 2022, when such channels as Rybar were restricted," Kovalenko said.

Kovalenko added that there are other restrictions, but he is not able to talk about them, "because other colleagues were working on it."

According to Kovalenko, it all starts with the compilation of a list, which is then shared with the Security Service of Ukraine and the Ministry of Digital Transformation. The list contains a descriptive part about the law and which publications violate it.

"The mechanics are there. We can also fantasize in general, take the same China, which simply forcibly removed applications from the App Store. In fact, this is one of those tools that can work. But VKontakte is still available in the App Store, and if I'm not mistaken, it can be downloaded on Android," Kovalenko said.