New Aspects of Extradition to Russia and Belarus in the Context of the War in Ukraine

Given the intensification of the fight against terrorism and also the obligation to respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of suspects or accused persons in criminal proceedings, including those involving requests for judicial cooperation, the analysis of the optional grounds for extradition shows that they arise whenever, as a result of surrender, the extraditable person’s situation risks being substantially adversely affected, disregarding the factors giving rise to such a risk, such as, for example, the person’s age or state of health, without, however, limiting the impediments to extradition to the latter two elements. Consequently, it is necessary for the court dealing with the extradition request to identify all the circumstances and risk factors relevant to the incidence of the optional grounds for refusal of extradition by examining all the relevant information, including the objective situation existing in the requesting State. In this context, data showing the existence of a significant risk as described by repeated assessments by competent bodies, which point to the violation of fundamental human rights in the requesting State and/or the subjection of the extraditable person to inhuman or degrading treatment, may be considered.