What Moscow accuses the French researcher of

RUSSIA – Laurent Vinatier will have to wait a little longer to find out his fate. The Frenchman’s trial opened in Moscow on Tuesday, September 3 shortly before noon (French time), before being immediately postponed to September 16. His pretrial detention has been extended until February 21, 2025. A collaborator of a Swiss NGO, he was arrested on June 6 in Russia while he was in a café.

“The court considers that it is impossible to begin the examination of the criminal case. The hearing is postponed to September 16 at 2 p.m.”said Judge Natalia Tcheprassova, after reporting the extension of his detention, according to AFP journalists on the scene. The adjournment had been requested because Laurent Vinatier was reportedly informed too late of the hearing date.

Aged 48, this researcher specializing in the post-Soviet space worked in Russia for the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, a Swiss NGO that mediates conflicts outside official diplomatic channels. He is accused of collecting military information. But for French diplomacy, these charges do not hold up. Last month, the Quai d’Orsay called for the release of all “people who remain arbitrarily detained in Russia, including our compatriot Laurent Vinatier.”

On Tuesday, the accused appeared in court smiling, wearing a blue shirt and dark jeans. Le HuffPost takes stock of what the Kremlin accuses him of.

· Laurent Vinatier, “foreign agent” ?

Several charges have been brought against the Frenchman by the Russian justice system. The authorities accuse him in particular of not having registered in Russia as “foreign agent” while he was collecting “information in the field of military activities” can be “used against security” of the country. He faces five years in prison.

Laurent Vinatier had admitted not having registered under the label of“foreign agent”used in Russia against critical voices and which imposes heavy administrative obligations on them, under penalty of sanction. He had explained during a hearing on his placement in pre-trial detention that he was unaware that Russian law required him to take this step.

Beyond that, the Russian security services (FSB) affirmed in a statement at the beginning of July that the accused had established “many contacts” with Russian political scientists, economists and military experts, as well as with officials. This accusation had raised fears of a more serious charge, for example for “espionage”a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

“During his discussions with these people, he collected military and military-technical information that could be used by foreign special services against the security of Russia.”assured the FSB.

· What was he actually doing in Russia?

According to sources interviewed by AFP, the Frenchman had been working for years on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, even before the Russian offensive in February 2022, as part of discreet diplomatic efforts in parallel with the states. For example, he sometimes put Ukrainian experts and political scientists in contact with some of their Russian counterparts.

« The Center for Humanitarian Dialogue seeks to bring warring parties together by offering mediation or good offices. It conducts what is called a “parallel diplomacy” »explained to the weekly The life his friend José Eduardo Pereira, a graduate of the Lille Institute of Political Studies and former journalist.

· Release requests rejected

Married and father of four children, Laurent Vinatier is in pre-trial detention and has repeatedly requested to be placed under house arrest, assuring that he did not intend to flee the country. But his requests have been refused by the Russian justice system.

“I have always wanted to present Russia’s interests in international relations in an appropriate way in my work.”he said during a hearing in early July. “I love Russia, my wife is Russian, my life is connected with Russia”he had said.

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