June 7 (Reuters) – Frenchman Laurent Vinatier, arrested in Russia for alleged espionage, has been charged with collecting military intelligence, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation announced on Friday.
The Center for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), a Switzerland-based conflict management organization, confirmed Thursday that the French national arrested in Moscow was Laurent Vinatier, a 47-year-old researcher who is among its advisers on Russia and Eurasia.
According to Russian authorities, he is suspected of having, over a period of several years, “intentionally collected information in the field of military and military-technical activities of the Russian Federation”, which could be used against the security of the state.
These charges carry a penalty of up to five years in prison.
The investigative committee said it intends to ask a court to remand Vinatier in custody.
French President Emmanuel Macron denied Thursday the accusations of espionage made against the researcher by the Russian authorities, denouncing a campaign of “intoxication” by Moscow in parallel with the war in Ukraine.
Several other Westerners are detained in Russia: American Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich, Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva and ex-Marine Paul Whelan.
Colleagues of Laurent Vinatier, a French-trained specialist in Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia, described him as a respected researcher and rejected allegations that he was involved in espionage activities in Russia.
“He is a phenomenal scholar who has conducted research in risky conditions for more than 15 years, notably in Chechnya and Belarus,” said Jean-François Ratelle, an assistant professor at the University of Ottawa, who is professionally familiar with Laurent Vinatier.
According to Frédérique Longuet-Marx, a French anthropologist who advised the researcher for his doctoral thesis on the Chechen diaspora, the researcher worked on the restoration of peace in several countries of the former Soviet Union and he is the author of two books on Chechnya. (Reporting Lucy Papachristou in London and Gabriel Stargardter in Paris, with the contribution of Filipp Lebedev; French version Diana Mandiá, edited by Sophie Louet)
