Austrian courts rejected the request of the Ukrainian authorities to extradite Kyrylo Shevchenko, the former governor of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), who was put on the wanted list by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine at the end of October 2022.

Shevchenko himself, declaring political persecution by the Office of the President, asked for political asylum in Austria, according to the publication of the Austrian publication Der Standard.

"Shevchenko left Ukraine in September and soon after the criminal case was opened, he applied for asylum in Austria, where he remains to this day. His whereabouts will not change for now: Austrian courts rejected the Ukrainian authorities' request for extradition," Der Standard wrote.

In a comment to the publication, the former governor of the NBU called the case opened by NABU against him "classical political persecution" as the main reason, citing his uncompromising position as governor of the National Bank and refusal to issue hryvnia and lower the key policy rate in the first year of the war.

The publication said that Shevchenko's decisions in monetary policy as governor of the central bank kept the financial system of the warring country from collapse, and now, a year after his resignation, allowed inflation to be kept at the level of 5% per annum.

Shevchenko said that if he returns to Ukraine, he should not hope for a fair trial, given that all of his defense's requests – more than 50 statements – were rejected by the court.

NABU declined to comment to the Austrian publication.