Mikhail Khodorkovsky press-center | Contacts | Press = releases | 'The Cyprus rulings are another example of the inability of = the Russian government to persuade any court outside of Russia'

Judge in Cyprus Denies Russian Extradition=20 Request:

Accuses Russian Judges of = Inappropriate=20 Conduct and Russian Government of Political Motivation = in=20 Yukos Cases

In another = landmark=20 decision, a Western court has rejected the Russian=20 Government=92s claims that the trial and conviction of = Mikhail=20 Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev were anything other = than a=20 politically motivated use of Russia=92s courts to = silence and=20 punish perceived political opponents.

Following = on=20 earlier decisions in Switzerland, the Netherlands, = England,=20 Liechtenstein and Lithuania, a District Court judge in = Nicosia, Cyprus has flatly rejected the Russian = Government=92s=20 request to extradite former Yukos executive Vladislav=20 Kartashov.

After weeks of hearing witnesses = and=20 examining thousands of pages of documents, the Cyprus = court=20 found that none of those accused in connection with = the Yukos=20 cases could expect to receive a fair trial in Russia = because=20 the proceedings, from beginning to end, =93are tainted = with=20 political motives in contravention of article 3 of the = European Convention on the Extradition of=20 Fugitives.=94

In his 55 page written opinion, = District=20 Court Judge D.J. Alecos Panayiotou is especially = critical of=20 several of the Russian Government witnesses brought to = testify=20 in favor of the extradition request, one of whom = admitted in=20 open court that he had consulted with five Russian = judges=20 involved in the Yukos cases before traveling to = Nicosia to=20 testify. The purpose of these meetings, the witness = said, was=20 to help prepare him to answer accusations that = defendants in=20 Yukos-related cases could not obtain a fair trial in=20 Russia.

But Judge Panayiotou said he found the = admitted=20 collusion between judges and prosecution witnesses = highly=20 irregular, lending credence to representations that = the=20 Russian judiciary lacks independence and is open to = political=20 manipulation, especially in high profile political = cases like=20 the Yukos prosecution, which began in = 2003.

=93The entire=20 testimony=85places the present case amongst those = exceptional=20 cases where the Court must not order the extradition = because=20 =85there is a real risk that (the defendant=92s) right = to a fair=20 trial will be flagrantly violated,=94 the judge = ruled.

In=20 order to reach his decision that Kartashov should not = be=20 extradited from Cyprus to stand trial in Russia for = tax=20 evasion and other financial crimes alleged in = connection with=20 his duties as head of a Yukos-related oil trading = company,=20 Judge Panayiotou examined---and flatly rejected---the = Russian=20 government=92s assertion that the charges filed = against=20 Kartashov and every other Yukos executive, including=20 Khodorkovsky and Lebedev, were not politically = motivated.=20

=93In this case it is not important to = determine whether=20 (Kartashov) has any political views or whether he = participated=20 in any way in the political life in Russia,=94 the = judge wrote.=20 =93What is important is that the charges brought = against him=20 fall within the wider framework of the Yukos case. As = a=20 manager of a company connected with Yukos, the = respondent must=20 be considered as a member of the class of the = =93oligarchs=94, a=20 class which the Russian authorities set as their = political aim=20 to dissolve, according to the testimony of professor = Sakwa=20 that was accepted by the Court.

=93I must also = note that=20 the testimony of the witnesses who testified on behalf = of the=20 requesting state (Russia) was also strongly = politically=20 coloured. The views on prejudice and hate against = Russia, the=20 defamation of Russian Justice by western media and the = intervention of politicians in Switzerland in the = issue of=20 Judicial decisions serving the interests of the West = can only=20 be judged as clearly political.=94

The Cypriot = decision=20 came after an extraordinary effort by the Russian = Government=20 to obtain Kartashov=92s extradition and reverse its = string of=20 losses in other European courts.

The Government = called=20 nine witnesses to testify in Nicosia, among them: = Alexander=20 Khaliulin, professor of criminal procedure and = criminology at=20 the Russia Legal Academy of the Ministry of Justice = who also=20 teaches criminal procedure to senior members of the = Attorney=20 General=92s office in Moscow; Julia Krokhina, dean of = the=20 Russian Academy of Law and author of =93Tax Law in = Russia;=94 and=20 Tatiana Rousanova, an investigator in the office of = the public=20 prosecutor of the Russian Federation.

In his = opinion,=20 dated 10 April, the judge said repeatedly that the = Russian=20 expert witnesses were unconvincing, badly prepared and = that,=20 in many instances, their testimony was counter = productive to=20 their case.

=93The witnesses Yiani, Khaliulin, = Krokhina,=20 Rousanova, Kletsova and Yablokov, instead of = responding with=20 convincing arguments to the scientific and = well-documented=20 position of the defence, sufficed themselves in = testifying=20 aphoristically and generally like for=20 instance:

Investigator Rousanova (P.W. no 7): = =93Whoever=20 alleges human rights violations at the Yukos trials = must hate=20 Russia very much=92 or =91the legal costs of the = respondent in=20 this case are paid by the theft of oil from Yukos=92 = or even=20 =91the rapporteur of PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of = the Council=20 of Europe) was prejudiced and did not take into = account the=20 position of the Russian side,=92 ignoring the fact = that=20 Schnarrenberger=92s report contains extensive = references to the=20 positions of both sides.

=93The general = impression which=20 the prosecution witnesses=85made on me is that the = purpose of=20 their testimony was not to enlighten the court,=94 the = judge=20 wrote. =93They did not hesitate to skillfully avoid = replying to=20 questions which, in their opinion, did not assist = their case.=20 It is a fact that the side of the requesting state = (Russia)=20 did not manage to give a convincing answer to all = those which=20 (Mr. Kartushov=92s) witnesses testified on in a = well-documented=20 way.=94

Among those testifying against the = Kartashov=20 extradition were William Bowring, professor of law at = the=20 University of London, a leading authority on = Russia=92s legal=20 system and Professor Richard Sakwa of the University = of Kent=20 in Canterbury.

In another Yukos-related case, = Cyprus=92=20 Supreme Court last week upheld the denial of = extradition to=20 Russia of Ivan Kolesnikov, a lawyer with the Moscow = law firm=20 of AML Feldmans. Kolesnikov=92s extradition was = requested by the=20 Russian authorities in January, 2005 and denied by the = Larnaka, Cyprus District Court in July 2006. The = Russian=20 Government appealed that decision but on May 13, the = Cyprus=20 Supreme Court denied the appeal, saying the Russian=20 authorities had failed to provide sufficient and = proper=20 documentation in support of the extradition=20 request.

Lawyers for Khodorkovsky and Lebedev = called=20 the Cyprus rulings another important victory in their=20 continuing fight to demonstrate the illegality of the = Yukos=20 criminal prosecutions and bankruptcy and another = example of=20 the inability of the Russian government to persuade = any court=20 outside of Russia that the YUKOS cases are anything = other than=20 thinly disguised political retribution. =

=93Once again,=20 another neutral court has looked at the evidence and = concluded=20 that the Russian proceedings are so tainted with = political and=20 due process violations that no one has or ever will = receive a=20 fair trial in these proceedings,=94 said Robert = Amsterdam,=20 Mikhail Khodorkovsky=92s international legal counsel. = =93These=20 cases underscore the urgency of the calls by The = Economist and=20 other Western media that the Khodorkovsky/Yukos = prosecution=20 must come to an end if the Russian government=92s = commitment to=20 rule of law and an independent judiciary is to be=20 credible.=94

For more information = contact:=20

Yuri Schmidt:
(7)-917-530-3697 =

Robert=20 Amsterdam:
(1)-416-827-4111=20


	CONTACTS \|=20 PRESS=20 RELEASES May 20, 2008 'The Cyprus rulings are another = example of=20 the inability of the Russian government to persuade = any court=20 outside of Russia' Judge in Cyprus Denies Russian Extradition=20 Request: Accuses Russian Judges of = Inappropriate=20 Conduct and Russian Government of Political Motivation = in=20 Yukos Cases In another = landmark=20 decision, a Western court has rejected the Russian=20 Government=92s claims that the trial and conviction of = Mikhail=20 Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev were anything other = than a=20 politically motivated use of Russia=92s courts to = silence and=20 punish perceived political opponents. Following = on=20 earlier decisions in Switzerland, the Netherlands, = England,=20 Liechtenstein and Lithuania, a District Court judge in = Nicosia, Cyprus has flatly rejected the Russian = Government=92s=20 request to extradite former Yukos executive Vladislav=20 Kartashov. After weeks of hearing witnesses = and=20 examining thousands of pages of documents, the Cyprus = court=20 found that none of those accused in connection with = the Yukos=20 cases could expect to receive a fair trial in Russia = because=20 the proceedings, from beginning to end, =93are tainted = with=20 political motives in contravention of article 3 of the = European Convention on the Extradition of=20 Fugitives.=94 In his 55 page written opinion, = District=20 Court Judge D.J. Alecos Panayiotou is especially = critical of=20 several of the Russian Government witnesses brought to = testify=20 in favor of the extradition request, one of whom = admitted in=20 open court that he had consulted with five Russian = judges=20 involved in the Yukos cases before traveling to = Nicosia to=20 testify. The purpose of these meetings, the witness = said, was=20 to help prepare him to answer accusations that = defendants in=20 Yukos-related cases could not obtain a fair trial in=20 Russia. But Judge Panayiotou said he found the = admitted=20 collusion between judges and prosecution witnesses = highly=20 irregular, lending credence to representations that = the=20 Russian judiciary lacks independence and is open to = political=20 manipulation, especially in high profile political = cases like=20 the Yukos prosecution, which began in = 2003. =93The entire=20 testimony=85places the present case amongst those = exceptional=20 cases where the Court must not order the extradition = because=20 =85there is a real risk that (the defendant=92s) right = to a fair=20 trial will be flagrantly violated,=94 the judge = ruled. In=20 order to reach his decision that Kartashov should not = be=20 extradited from Cyprus to stand trial in Russia for = tax=20 evasion and other financial crimes alleged in = connection with=20 his duties as head of a Yukos-related oil trading = company,=20 Judge Panayiotou examined---and flatly rejected---the = Russian=20 government=92s assertion that the charges filed = against=20 Kartashov and every other Yukos executive, including=20 Khodorkovsky and Lebedev, were not politically = motivated.=20 =93In this case it is not important to = determine whether=20 (Kartashov) has any political views or whether he = participated=20 in any way in the political life in Russia,=94 the = judge wrote.=20 =93What is important is that the charges brought = against him=20 fall within the wider framework of the Yukos case. As = a=20 manager of a company connected with Yukos, the = respondent must=20 be considered as a member of the class of the = =93oligarchs=94, a=20 class which the Russian authorities set as their = political aim=20 to dissolve, according to the testimony of professor = Sakwa=20 that was accepted by the Court. =93I must also = note that=20 the testimony of the witnesses who testified on behalf = of the=20 requesting state (Russia) was also strongly = politically=20 coloured. The views on prejudice and hate against = Russia, the=20 defamation of Russian Justice by western media and the = intervention of politicians in Switzerland in the = issue of=20 Judicial decisions serving the interests of the West = can only=20 be judged as clearly political.=94 The Cypriot = decision=20 came after an extraordinary effort by the Russian = Government=20 to obtain Kartashov=92s extradition and reverse its = string of=20 losses in other European courts. The Government = called=20 nine witnesses to testify in Nicosia, among them: = Alexander=20 Khaliulin, professor of criminal procedure and = criminology at=20 the Russia Legal Academy of the Ministry of Justice = who also=20 teaches criminal procedure to senior members of the = Attorney=20 General=92s office in Moscow; Julia Krokhina, dean of = the=20 Russian Academy of Law and author of =93Tax Law in = Russia;=94 and=20 Tatiana Rousanova, an investigator in the office of = the public=20 prosecutor of the Russian Federation. In his = opinion,=20 dated 10 April, the judge said repeatedly that the = Russian=20 expert witnesses were unconvincing, badly prepared and = that,=20 in many instances, their testimony was counter = productive to=20 their case. =93The witnesses Yiani, Khaliulin, = Krokhina,=20 Rousanova, Kletsova and Yablokov, instead of = responding with=20 convincing arguments to the scientific and = well-documented=20 position of the defence, sufficed themselves in = testifying=20 aphoristically and generally like for=20 instance: Investigator Rousanova (P.W. no 7): = =93Whoever=20 alleges human rights violations at the Yukos trials = must hate=20 Russia very much=92 or =91the legal costs of the = respondent in=20 this case are paid by the theft of oil from Yukos=92 = or even=20 =91the rapporteur of PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of = the Council=20 of Europe) was prejudiced and did not take into = account the=20 position of the Russian side,=92 ignoring the fact = that=20 Schnarrenberger=92s report contains extensive = references to the=20 positions of both sides. =93The general = impression which=20 the prosecution witnesses=85made on me is that the = purpose of=20 their testimony was not to enlighten the court,=94 the = judge=20 wrote. =93They did not hesitate to skillfully avoid = replying to=20 questions which, in their opinion, did not assist = their case.=20 It is a fact that the side of the requesting state = (Russia)=20 did not manage to give a convincing answer to all = those which=20 (Mr. Kartushov=92s) witnesses testified on in a = well-documented=20 way.=94 Among those testifying against the = Kartashov=20 extradition were William Bowring, professor of law at = the=20 University of London, a leading authority on = Russia=92s legal=20 system and Professor Richard Sakwa of the University = of Kent=20 in Canterbury. In another Yukos-related case, = Cyprus=92=20 Supreme Court last week upheld the denial of = extradition to=20 Russia of Ivan Kolesnikov, a lawyer with the Moscow = law firm=20 of AML Feldmans. Kolesnikov=92s extradition was = requested by the=20 Russian authorities in January, 2005 and denied by the = Larnaka, Cyprus District Court in July 2006. The = Russian=20 Government appealed that decision but on May 13, the = Cyprus=20 Supreme Court denied the appeal, saying the Russian=20 authorities had failed to provide sufficient and = proper=20 documentation in support of the extradition=20 request. Lawyers for Khodorkovsky and Lebedev = called=20 the Cyprus rulings another important victory in their=20 continuing fight to demonstrate the illegality of the = Yukos=20 criminal prosecutions and bankruptcy and another = example of=20 the inability of the Russian government to persuade = any court=20 outside of Russia that the YUKOS cases are anything = other than=20 thinly disguised political retribution. = =93Once again,=20 another neutral court has looked at the evidence and = concluded=20 that the Russian proceedings are so tainted with = political and=20 due process violations that no one has or ever will = receive a=20 fair trial in these proceedings,=94 said Robert = Amsterdam,=20 Mikhail Khodorkovsky=92s international legal counsel. = =93These=20 cases underscore the urgency of the calls by The = Economist and=20 other Western media that the Khodorkovsky/Yukos = prosecution=20 must come to an end if the Russian government=92s = commitment to=20 rule of law and an independent judiciary is to be=20 credible.=94 For more information = contact:=20 Yuri Schmidt: (7)-917-530-3697 = Robert=20 Amsterdam: (1)-416-827-4111=20