I'm not sure how to articulate it, but I find it immensely interesting that Snowden fled to Russia, while Pavel is fleeing from Russia, both for issues within similar realms.
Similar realms maybe, but I still think there is a huge difference between exposing your country's secret service operations and running a popular website. The fact that the former gets you into legal trouble is expected. The fact that the latter does is very concerning.
He got in trouble for refusal to turn his company into goverment surveillance device. Much like the ones Snowden exposed so there's some symmetry between those situations albeit not obvious one.
Running Vkontakte in the US would get you into huge legal trouble, considering how many movies and music albums are hosted there without permission. And I think you would be required to share users’ personal data with US law enforcement agencies just as much.
Well, he didn't have a Russian visa when he started traveling. US did not cancel his passport before he left Hong Kong, and they did not cancel his passport after he'd arrive at supposedly Cuba, they cancelled his passport precisely after he landed in SVO transit zone, but before he could fly out of it.
Snowden is obviously not in Russia because they value free speech and privacy so much there. He's there because he's safe from the US, and because Putin likes messing with the US. As soon as Putin's interests change, Snowden isn't safe anymore.
It's not that surprising that people who disagree with their own government would flee to the protection of another, or that the destination government would play it for political advantage.
It's pretty simple actually. Russia is one of the few countries that aren't willing to extradict Snowden to the US and are able to resist pressure to do so.
It's only natural to hide from somebody on his (I don't want to use the word "foe", but I can't find anything better) foe's territory.
…That's only to be fair, but I'm not sure they have issues in similar realms. I don't deny it, but I'm not sure. While Snowden is some "justice warrior" fighting over the idea who is obviously not welcome in the USA, Durov is much more prosaic person. I mean, he may have some ideas and moral principles he can't neglect, but he is a businessman, clever guy prone to dramatic performances and, honestly, quite a weasel himself. And it's not even clear if he has reasons to be hated by some secret sovernment agents or something as Snowden is. He is not an owner and not even an employee of Vk anymore. He does't claim to know some government secrets or anything. And while it's possible (likely, actually) that he was forced to get rid of stocks, his company wasn't really "taken" from him. I mean, he sold it, he got his money, he didn't suddenly disappear and wasn't taken to jail like Khodorkovsky, when there possibly were reasons for that. And now he has nothing to do with Vk, and there're claims that he wasn't even forced to quit. Weird, huh.
So I'd say there's quite a probability of that thing being just another spectacle.
Snowden didn't flee to Russia. He was on his way to South America, transiting through Russia, when the USA revoked his passport, forcing him to stay in Russia.
Several comments at the same comment level as this comment seem to take seriously the assertion that Snowden only incidentally ended up in Russia. In fact, his route from Hawaii to Hong Kong (a territory controlled by the central government of China) and then on to Russia looks very suspicious to readers who know what airline flights connected at that time of year from Hawaii to other places. Moreover, Snowden had contact with agents of the Russian government while he was still in Hong Kong[1], after he left his hotel there. From the beginning, as a person who has traveled to Hong Kong (and, for that matter, to Hawaii) before, I have been puzzled by his choice of air routes.
Maybe my reading comprehension is failing me, but where exactly does the article say Snowden had contact with agents of the Russian government while he was still in Hong Kong?
Hong Kong was a good choice. It does not extradite to US or many countries friendly with US and has a slow moving legal system that is relatively independent compared to other options that meet the first criteria. It gave him a relatively safe place and time.
