Austrian court ruling on Firtash extradition to U.S. has yet to take effect – ministry

16:17, 19.03.2014 1 min read

The decision to extradite Ukrainian businessman Dmytro Firtash to the United States was made by an Austrian court, but the verdict has not taken effect yet, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.

"According to the latest report from our Embassy in Austria, the decision on his extradition was made by a court of first instance, the court of the land, it has not been considered yet. This is why we cannot say yet that this decision has somehow taken effect," Foreign Ministry spokesman Yevhen Perebyinis said.

Austria's system of making extradition decisions is very complicated, multi-stage and involves several levels, with the final decision made by the Justice Ministry, he said.

"So today we cannot say that such a decision on his extradition exists," the diplomat said.

At the moment, Firtash is in police custody in Vienna and has yet to post bail for his release, he said.

There has been no meeting yet between Firtash and a Ukrainian diplomat, Perebyinis said.