Legal Representative Advocates for Multiple-Year Imprisonment for Captive French Citizen in Russia
During the court trial of French NGO employee Laurent Vinatier, captured in Russia back in June, the prosecution proposed a sentence of three years and three months in prison. As reported by an AFP reporter in the Moscow courtroom, the prosecutor suggested that Vinatier serve his time in a penitentiary facility. Vinatier stands accused of failing to register as a "foreign agent," as per the ruling's demands.
Russia frequently employs its "foreign agents" legislation against opponents and critics, turning it into a tool for surveillance and persecution. In her argument, the prosecutor pointed out that even though Vinatier had admitted guilt and expressed remorse, his actions posed a considerable threat to Russia's security.
Before his capture in Moscow last June, Vinatier was employed as a Russia and ex-Soviet bloc expert for the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), a non-profit organization specializing in conflict resolution through mediation and covert diplomacy.
The organization's primary goal is to "prevent and settle armed conflicts worldwide through mediation and covert diplomacy." According to AFP reports, Vinatier had been involved in the Russia-Ukraine conflict prior to Russia's military offensive in February 2022.
One of Vinatier's defense attorneys, Oleg Bessonov, commented on the prosecution's sentence request, calling it "shockingly severe." Vinatier had admitted guilt and argued that he was not aware of his actions' unlawfulness.
In the past years, numerous Western nationals have been arrested in Russia, with accusations of arrests aimed at securing the release of Russian citizens held abroad. On August 1, in the largest prisoner swap since the end of the Cold War, 16 detainees in Russia and Belarus were released in exchange for eight Russian citizens and two children held in foreign prisons.
The proposed sentence for Laurent Vinatier, accused of failing to register as a "foreign agent," includes three years and three months of imprisonment in a penitentiary facility. Despite admitting guilt and expressing remorse, the prosecutor argued that Vinatier's actions posed a significant threat to Russia's security, justifying the harsh imprisonment.
