The Armenian Court of Appeals has denied the release of Georgian citizen Giorgi Kinoiani, who is wanted by Russia and faces deportation.
“The hearing of Giorgi’s appeal took place without his presence. The court did not grant our request for Giorgi to be released from unlawful detention, where he has already been held for 23 days. At this stage, the only option is to wait—we are awaiting an expedited ruling from the European Court of Human Rights on Giorgi’s release. At the same time, we plan to appeal to the Court of Cassation to prove that the decision of the self-proclaimed republic and Giorgi’s detention are illegal. We extend our deepest gratitude to the lawyers of the Helsinki Commission, especially Ani and Artur, for their support and dedication,” Kinoiani’s family members wrote on his Facebook page.
In October 2024, the so-called court of the occupied Donetsk region sentenced Giorgi Kinoiani in absentia to seven years in prison for alleged participation in the war in Ukraine. Kinoiani, who is wanted by Russia, was detained on the Armenian border on September 3. He was arrested in Armenia at Russia’s request and placed in 40-day extradition custody.
“I don’t know what will happen. The Armenian lawyers are not giving us hope. They say the risk of extradition is very high. When crossing the border, he had no information that he would be detained or face any problems; otherwise, he would never have made that decision,” Giorgi’s brother, Vazha Kinoiani, told TV Pirveli. According to him, Georgian border guards at the Geguti checkpoint did not warn Giorgi Kinoiani whether he was wanted under a red notice.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia later explained to a television channel that Russia is searching for Kinoiani not through an Interpol red notice, but via the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) system, which Georgian border guards could not have detected.
Narek Sargsyan, spokesperson for Armenia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Armenian Service that the Armenian authorities had already informed the Russian Federation about the detention of the wanted Georgian citizen.
According to the spokesperson, after police officers identified Kinoiani while crossing the border on September 3, they notified the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Ministry of Justice, and the requesting party — the Russian Federation.
Netgazeti inquired whether Georgia’s diplomatic mission had been in communication with the Armenian side and what measures were being taken to prevent Kinoiani’s extradition to Russia.
“The Georgian Embassy in Armenia was informed of the detention by the family members of the detainee; however, the embassy has not yet received any official notification from the Armenian authorities. The consulate is working on the matter within the scope of its competence,” Georgia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Netgazeti in early September.
