Russian ambassador comments on extradition of Mihran Poghosyan
11.09.2019,
16:04
Russia's ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin told a news conference today that he had not received information about giving Mihran Poghosyan political asylum in Russia.
YEREVAN, September 11. /ARKA/. Russia's ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopyrkin told a news conference today that he had not received information about giving Mihran Poghosyan political asylum in Russia.
Mihran Poghosyan, a former parliament member from the Republican Party of Armenia, and a former Chief Enforcement Officer is accused of embezzling at least 64.2 million drams ($132,000) in public funds when he ran the Service for the Mandatory Execution of Judicial Acts.
Poghosyan had been detained in April in the Russian region of Karelia on an arrest warrant issued by Armenia, but was later released and was said to ask Russian authorities to grant him asylum.
Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General said in August that Russian prosecutors rejected its request to extradite Poghosyan, citing an article of a convention signed by Russia, Armenia and some other former Soviet republics in 1993, which says that a signatory to the convention can reject extradition demands that could damage it sovereignty and national security or contradict its national legislation.
The ambassador said: 'As far as I understand it, if a person is in Russia that does not mean that he received political asylum. As for Poghosyan, according to my information, there is a legal procedure for providing the necessary documents.”
He also said that he did not have information about other applications for political asylum, sought by Armenian citizens. Kopyrkin emphasized that Russia's message to the new authorities of Armenia is absolutely clear- Armenia and Russia are strategic partners, allies, fraternal countries and fraternal peoples. 'In no way has Russia's position in this regard changed. As far as I understand, this corresponds to the guidelines of the Armenian leadership as well,” he said. -0-
Mihran Poghosyan, a former parliament member from the Republican Party of Armenia, and a former Chief Enforcement Officer is accused of embezzling at least 64.2 million drams ($132,000) in public funds when he ran the Service for the Mandatory Execution of Judicial Acts.
Poghosyan had been detained in April in the Russian region of Karelia on an arrest warrant issued by Armenia, but was later released and was said to ask Russian authorities to grant him asylum.
Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General said in August that Russian prosecutors rejected its request to extradite Poghosyan, citing an article of a convention signed by Russia, Armenia and some other former Soviet republics in 1993, which says that a signatory to the convention can reject extradition demands that could damage it sovereignty and national security or contradict its national legislation.
The ambassador said: 'As far as I understand it, if a person is in Russia that does not mean that he received political asylum. As for Poghosyan, according to my information, there is a legal procedure for providing the necessary documents.”
He also said that he did not have information about other applications for political asylum, sought by Armenian citizens. Kopyrkin emphasized that Russia's message to the new authorities of Armenia is absolutely clear- Armenia and Russia are strategic partners, allies, fraternal countries and fraternal peoples. 'In no way has Russia's position in this regard changed. As far as I understand, this corresponds to the guidelines of the Armenian leadership as well,” he said. -0-
