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Russia Rebukes U.S. Envoy Over Jailed Kremlin Aide
Russia protested to the United States on March 10 (Saturday) over a U.S. judge's refusal to grant bail to a former top Kremlin aide held in New York on Swiss money laundering charges.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said deputy minister Georgy Mamedov summoned U.S. ambassador James Collins to express Russia's disagreement with Friday's decision by U.S. magistrate Viktor Pohorelsky to keep Pavel Borodin in jail.
Borodin, who once headed the Kremlin's vast property empire, was detained at New York airport on January 17. Borodin, whose latest job was the secretary of the Russia-Belarus union, had flown to the United States for George W. Bush's inauguration.
Swiss prosecutors want Borodin, 54, on charges of money-laundering.Borodin denies the charges and says he is ready to face Swiss prosecutors if freed.
"A serious concern was voiced that 'Borodin's case' is turning fast from a legal into a political affair, which could have a negative impact on Russian-U.S. relations," said a Foreign Ministry statement issued after Mamedov's meeting with Collins.
"It was stressed that the Russian side hopes for a change in the position of the court concerning a request of defense lawyers of the State Secretary of the Union State of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus," it added.
The statement also said Moscow hoped that the U.S. State Department would "take into account all circumstances and show an objective approach" when making the final decision on whether to extradite Borodin to Switzerland.
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