President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday defended a decision to grant French nationality to Telegram chief Pavel Durov, who faces a possible trial related to illegal content carried on his popular messaging app.

Speaking to reporters on a visit to Serbia, the French president said he did not know that Durov would be coming to France and denied having issued "any invitation whatsoever" to the Russian-born billionaire.

"We are a country where there is a separation of powers," Macron said.

"I was completely unaware that he was coming. This is normal," he added.

Macron said he "totally" backed the decision to grant Durov citizenship, adding it was a "strategy" concerning those who "make the effort to learn the French language" and who "shine in the world".

Durov, 39, was sensationally detained at Le Bourget airport outside Paris at the weekend and on Wednesday evening charged with a litany of violations related to the messaging app. He was also banned from leaving the country.

Numerous questions have been raised about the timing and circumstances of Durov's detention, with........

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