Laurent Vinatier will remain in pretrial detention in Russian jails until at least February 21. This is what the Frenchman learned on Tuesday, September 3, on the first day of a trial in Moscow that was adjourned to September 16. The collaborator of a Swiss NGO, who appeared all smiles in court, had been arrested in early June in Russia and accused of collecting military information. The Russian authorities accuse him of not having registered as a “as a foreign agent”, while collecting “information in the field of military activities” can be “used against security” of the country. Laurent Vinatier faces five years in prison. Laurent Vinatier had admitted the facts. The label “foreign agent” used in Russia against potentially critical voices imposes heavy administrative obligations on them, under penalty of sanction. This accusation had initially raised fears of a more serious charge, such as the“espionage”, a crime punishable by twenty years in prison.
The case comes at a time of high tensions between Moscow and Paris: Russia is accused of a series of acts of destabilization and disinformation in France, while Paris is criticized for its growing support for Ukraine. In early June, just after his arrest, Laurent Vinatier, 48, explained during a hearing on his placement in pretrial detention that he was unaware that Russian law required him to take this step. The Russian security services (FSB), for their part, stated in a statement in early July that the accused had established “many contacts” with Russian political scientists, economists and military experts, as well as with officials.
Hostage-taking, according to Washington
Laurent Vinatier is a researcher specializing in the post-Soviet space, he worked in Russia for the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, a Swiss NGO that mediates conflicts outside official diplomatic channels. According to several sources, 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. The Center for Humanitarian Dialogue had for its part affirmed in June that it was doing “everything possible to help” Laurent Vinatier, who “lives in Switzerland and travels regularly for work.” “I have always wanted, in my work, to adequately present Russia’s interests in international relations, he said during a hearing in early July. I love Russia, my wife is Russian, my life is connected with Russia.” Married and the father of four children, he is in pre-trial detention and has repeatedly requested to be placed under house arrest, assuring that he had no intention of fleeing the country. But his requests have been refused by the Russian courts.
In recent years, several Westerners, particularly Americans, have been arrested in Russia and targeted with serious charges, with Washington denouncing hostage-taking to obtain the release of Russians held abroad. On August 1, the West and Russia carried out the largest prisoner exchange since the end of the Cold War, including American journalist Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan, released by Moscow. The agreement also allowed for the release of 16 people held in Russia and Belarus, in exchange for eight Russians held in the United States, Germany, Poland, Slovenia and Norway, as well as the two children of a spy couple. Paris then called on Moscow to immediately release the remaining people “arbitrarily detained in Russia”, including Laurent Vinatier.
