Question for written answer E-007126/2014 to the Commission (Vice-President / High Representative) Rule 130 Heidi Hautala (Verts/ALE), Rebecca Harms (Verts/ALE), Benedek Jávor (Verts/ALE), Tunne Kelam (PPE) and Ana Gomes (S&D)

Subject: VP/HR - Political persecution of a Kazakh dissident

Mukhtar Ablyazov is currently in detention in , and faces possible extradition to or Ukraine. During a procedure which gave rise to doubts regarding the illegal involvement of the Kazakh side, which is not a party to the case, the court in Aix-en-Provence approved extradition to both countries. Owing to procedural irregularities, the French overturned this decision on appeal and referred the case to the court in Lyon for review. A new hearing has been set for 25 September 2014.

Information published on a Ukrainian website, trust.ua, seems to indicate that the Kazakh BTA Bank has been illegally influencing the procedure through law firms in Ukraine and France, by giving indications to investigative bodies in Ukraine and Russia and drafting documents to be used in court.

Messages published by trust.ua appear to prove unlawful contact between the French prosecutor from Aix-en-Provence, the BTA Bank lawyers and representatives of the Russian and Ukrainian authorities.

1. Is the Vice-President / High Representative in contact with the relevant French authorities with a view to ensuring that Ablyazov’s rights are respected?

2. What is the Vice-President / High Representative doing to ensure compliance with Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Articles 18, 19 and 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union with regard to this specific case?

1035334.EN PE 538.870