MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Four Russian fugitives in Argentina await extradition

Argentina and Russia signed a treaty on mutual legal assistance and extradition back in 2014, Zakharov explained.

The Russian government has filed a formal request to Argentina for the extradition of four of their nationals who are charged with economic crimes, Deputy Prosecutor General Alexei Zakharov, in Buenos Aires for the 24th conference of the International Association of Prosecutors, said Friday.

 “Over the past three years, there haven’t been any extradition cases. The Argentine side is now considering four of our requests. We hope that positive decisions will be made on them,” Zakharov was quoted by the Russian newsagency Tass as saying.

According to the delegation, Moscow has requested the extradition of Russians, who are charged, among other, with economic crimes.

Argentina and Russia signed a treaty on mutual legal assistance and extradition back in 2014, establishing constructive cooperation between prosecutors, Zakharov noted. “A two-year cooperation program has been developed. We hope that after Argentina’s prosecutor general is appointed, it will be signed and fulfilled,” he noted.

Russia has also inked treaties on legal assistance with other Latin American countries — Colombia, Mexico and Panama, Zakharov said. Russia’s Justice Ministry is working on coordinating bilateral treaties with Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Paraguay and Uruguay. Moscow is also discussing agreements on extradition with Venezuela, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Costa Rica, Paraguay and Ecuador.

According to Zakharov, nearly 200 people are extradited to Russia every year, while Russia grants some 800 extradition requests. Most extradition requests are satisfied by Germany, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and France. Meanwhile, Russia still does not have agreements on extradition with the United Kingdom and the United States. “It’s all about politics, they acknowledge this. Now the political situation is challenging, we cannot sign any documents,” Deputy Head of the Main Directorate for International Law and Cooperation at the Russian Prosecutor General's Office Pyotr Gorodov said.

 

(Source: Tass)