It's not so easy...
Like everything, this is prob not an easy discussion.
Before internet, a large part of crime stopping was based on phone tapping, intercepting SMS messages, intercepting all kinds of communications before tech existed.
So it is understandable law enforcement wants / needs 'a way in' to be (more) succesful in their job.
Of those five+ nations the democratic elected governments already have the right to access homes, tap phones, etc for 50+ years.
All telco providers by law are required to provide ability to tap phones when a legal warrant is presented.
So I would say, the governments are prob fully in their legal rights to compel companies to provide access to comms of their users.
Problem is of course that this is no longer a local telco providing access to its local government.
The issue now is that any gov, whether you and I consider it good or evil, is making a claim to a company not under its laws to force it to do something that might result in something not legal where that company is based (e.g. arresting annoying journalist).
Hence the Apples of this world are blocking US gov, because if they allow access to one, they have to allow access to all.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
