Georgian citizen who fought in Ukraine detained in Yerevan, faces extradition to Russia

Georgian citizen faces extradition to Russia

Georgian citizen Giorgi Kinoyan, who fought in Ukraine during the first stage of Russia’s full-scale invasion, has been detained in Armenia and faces possible extradition to Russia.

On 25 October 2024, Kinoyan was convicted in absentia by Russian authorities in occupied Donetsk and sentenced to seven years in prison.

He is currently being held for 40 days, during which time Russia must present the evidence and documents required for his extradition.

Kinoyan entered Armenia via Georgia, with Georgian border guards allowing him through without informing him that he was wanted. According to his family, had he known, he would not have left Georgia.

“I don’t know what will happen next. Armenian lawyers give us no hope and say the risk of extradition is very high. When crossing the border, he was not told he would be detained or face any problems — otherwise he would not have made that decision.

I went to the Georgian embassy in Armenia, but at this stage there is no response. They told me they have the information and the relevant agencies are working on it, but no one has contacted me or any other family members. Today we plan to reach out to the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and every institution that might be able to help us,” Kinoyan’s brother told TV Pirveli.

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Kinoyan’s friends and relatives say his extradition to Russia would put him in great danger. The family has also appealed to Georgia’s ombudsman, but so far see no hope of a positive outcome. For now, they believe the only option is to escalate the case to the very top and “get through” to the Georgian government.

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According to Georgia’s foreign ministry, the country’s border guards were not at fault, as Russia had not put out an Interpol notice for Giorgi Kinoyan. Instead, the search was issued through the CIS’s DESETE system, which Georgian border guards could not access since Georgia is no longer a member of the CIS.

As for Georgia’s ambassador to Armenia, TV Pirveli’s attempts to reach him were unsuccessful.

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Commentary

In this context, Georgian political party representatives recall past cases of leaks of information about Georgian servicemen that ended up in the hands of Russian intelligence.

Tina Bokuchava, leader of the opposition United National Movement, went so far as to claim that the ruling Georgian Dream party had “handed over a Georgian citizen to Russia and done nothing to save him.”

“This gang of traitors and criminals are open allies of Putin. Instead of defending Georgia’s national dignity and its citizens — including those fighting our common enemy, Putin — they once again take the side of the occupier and his interests. So it is entirely possible that this gang of traitor-criminals handed a Georgian citizen over to Russia,” Bokuchava said.

News in Georgia