ECHR sends inquiry to Russia concerning Ukrainian pilot Savchenko case - lawyer
The European Court of Human Rights on July 15 started proceedings in the Ukrainian military pilot Nadia Savchenko's case vs Russia, granting it priority status, Ukrainian defense lawyer Valentyna Telychenko said on Facebook.
"The court president also forwarded questions to the Russian government as to how and on what grounds Nadia Savchenko appeared at a Russian detention facility and why she has still not had the opportunity to meet with a Ukrainian consul. The court obliged the Russian government to inform it about the conditions in which the Ukrainian pilot is being held," Telychenko said.
It was reported earlier that Savchenko, a 31-year-old navigator, was fighting with the Aidar volunteer battalion in eastern Ukraine when she was captured by illegal armed units in June near the town of Schastia, a suburb of Luhansk.
It was reported on July 8 that Savchenko was being held at a detention facility in Voronezh. The Russian Investigative Committee claimed that Savchenko had crossed the border without documents under the guise of a refugee and was detained later for identification, after which it turned out that she was suspected of playing some role in the killing of Russian TV journalists Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin near Luhansk. On July 9, Russia indicted her for complicity in murder.
The Voronezh Regional Court ruled soon afterwards that she will remain in pretrial custody at least until August 30.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has instructed the Prosecutor General's Office and the Security Service to look into the circumstances of Savchenko's transfer to Russian territory. Poroshenko also instructed the Foreign Ministry and other government agencies to take every possible measure to secure the Ukrainian pilot's unconditional release by Russia and her return home.
The Ukrainian presidential press service reported on July 14 that Russian presidential chief of staff Sergei Ivanov had promised to arrange a Ukrainian consul's access to Savchenko. However, the consul has still not been able to meet with the pilot.
