The West Denies Russia’s Extradition Requests Due to ‘Politics’ 2023

The Kommersant business newspaper said Thursday that Western law enforcement agencies had rejected Russian extradition and legal help requests for “political” grounds this year.

Russia’s General Prosecutor’s Office said that European nations rejected 46 Russian extradition petitions in January-May 2023.

Austria, Italy, Germany, and Poland rejected 15 applications for political reasons.

Kommersant said that EU judges refused to hand over suspects to Russia due to worries that they would be mistreated in Russian captivity.

The Russian accused face domestic allegations of organized crime, terrorism, hostage-taking, manslaughter, and economic crimes.

The number of Russian extradition petitions denied has risen.

In January–May 2023, Kommersant reported that Russia extradited 48 defendants to their native country for criminal prosecution.

Eleven were extradited from the “far abroad,” including the US and EU.

In January–May 2023, U.S. and European courts denied 27 Russian legal aid petitions, Kommersant reported.

Twenty-three rejections, including 17 from Switzerland, cited “political motivations” for Russian criminal proceedings.

Swiss judicial officials had “the highest doubts about whether Russia will adhere to guarantees or other international legal obligations in connection with the provided legal assistance.”

Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office labeled the denials “Russophobia” and a “win for international crime.”