Sawt Falasteen - Russia orders Frenchman held in 'foreign agent' case

Laurent Vinatier, a 47-year-old who works for a Swiss conflict mediation NGO, was arrested on Thursday and officially charged with breaching Russia's "foreign agents" law, charges which carry up to five years in jail.

Vinatier, who was held in a metal cage at the back of the courtroom, accepted the accusations against him.

"I have accepted that I am guilty," he told the court. "I present my apologies."

The court session was a hearing on selecting a measure of restraint, not a review of the case against him.

The judge ordered Vinatier sent to jail until at least August 5, pending trial.

Investigators accuse the Frenchman of gathering military information that could be used against Russia by foreign states.

Under Russian law, people who collect, report or share information related to Russia's military or security services are required to register as "foreign agents".

Vinatier is an advisor with the Geneva-based Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue and a veteran researcher on Russia and other post-Soviet countries.

The Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue "works to prevent and resolve armed conflicts around the world through mediation and discreet diplomacy," according to a statement on its website.

After his arrest on Thursday, it said it was working "to secure Laurent's release."

- 'Against the organisation' -

Appearing in court in a dark shirt and jeans on Friday, Vinatier spoke Russian and French during the hearing.

"What happened is not against me, it's against the organisation as a whole," he said.

The Swiss foreign ministry said the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue was an NGO that was "funded by several states."

Switzerland said it "does not finance its activities in connection with Russia."

Vinatier's lawyers had argued for him to be placed under house arrest and said he could stay at his wife's apartment in Moscow.

"I have no intention of obstructing the investigation. Yesterday I had a great conversation with the investigators, proof of my good intentions," Vinatier said when questioned in court.

He faces up to five years in prison if convicted, although Russia has previously used "foreign agent" charges as a pretext to arrest people before levelling more serious charges.

The law has typically been used to target Russian citizens and domestic critics of the Kremlin, such as activists, campaigners and independent journalists, rather than foreign citizens.

US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was arrested on a similar charge last year, before a more serious case of spreading "false information" about the army was levelled against her.

On Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron said he was aware of Vinatier's arrest and added that he had no connections with the French government.

"It is one of our citizens working for a Swiss NGO... it was in no way someone who was working for France," Macron told French television in an interview Thursday.

In Russia, suspects can spend months on pre-trial detention pending a trial, with the period in jail regularly extended by a few months in court hearings.

- Westerners arrested in Russia -

Russia has also arrested several Western citizens in recent years, drawing accusations that Moscow is holding them to trade in prisoner exchanges for Russians jailed abroad.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich was arrested on "espionage" charges last year and former US marine Paul Whelan has been in prison for more than five years, also accused of spying.

Both reject the charges and have been designated "wrongfully detained" by the White House.

US basketball player Brittney Griner was freed in a prisoner exchange for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in 2022 after she was arrested at a Moscow airport with medicinal cannabis oil.

Vinatier's arrest came days after France's domestic intelligence agency the DGSI detained a 26-year-old Russian-Ukrainian man on suspicion of planning a violent act after he injured himself in an explosion.

T.Khatib--SF-PST