(Reuters) – Russian former reporter Ivan Safronov mentioned forward of the resumption of his treason trial on Monday that he plans to vigorously fight the prices in opposition to him and doesn’t concern the prospect of being jailed.
Safronov, who coated army affairs for the Vedomosti and Kommersant newspapers earlier than changing into an aide to the head of Russia’s area company two months earlier than his arrest in July 2020, faces as much as 20 years in jail if discovered responsible.
He denies accusations of passing army secrets and techniques about Russian arms gross sales in the Middle East and Africa to the Czech Republic, a NATO member, whereas he labored as a reporter in 2017, calling them “a whole travesty of justice and customary sense”.
His detention despatched a chill by means of Russia’s media panorama, the place controls have been already tight and have been tightened additional since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
His trial resumes behind closed doorways later on Monday.
Striking a defiant tone in private correspondence seen by Reuters on Monday, Safronov mentioned he harboured no illusions about the prospect of being imprisoned for his alleged offences.
“I will fight until the finish, there is no such thing as a doubt about that,” Safronov wrote in a letter despatched from Moscow’s Lefortovo jail and dated March 26.
“If it is a jail time period, then it is a jail time period. It completely does not scare me,” mentioned the letter, proven to Reuters on situation the addressee remained nameless.
Safronov has mentioned state investigators pointed to his acquaintance with a Czech journalist he met in Moscow in 2010 who later arrange a web site which Safronov mentioned he contributed to utilizing info fully primarily based on open sources.
Since sending troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, Moscow has launched a regulation outlawing the use of sure phrases to explain its army intervention in Ukraine, which it calls a “particular army operation”.
That prompted many unbiased media shops to shut or relocate.
(Reporting by Reuters; enhancing by Philippa Fletcher)
