Rusland waarschuwt Westen voor bemoeienis rechtzaak Khodorkovsky (en)
EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Russia has accused Europe and the US of attempting to influence the trial of jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, brandishing the West's recent criticism as "unacceptable".
"We would like to, once again, stress that this question is a matter for the legal system of the Russian Federation. Attempts to bring pressure on the court are unacceptable," Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday (28 December).
The warning follows German and US criticism of the guilty verdict handed to Mr Khodorkovsky by a Russian court a day earlier.
Once Russia's richest man, Mr Khodorkovsky was first jailed in 2005 for fraud and tax evasion and on Monday was convicted of embezzlement and money laundering, together with former business partner Platon Lebedev.
Judge Viktor Danilkin said the court found both men guilty of embezzling tens of billions of dollars worth of oil from their own company.
Critics say the court's decision is politically motivated, with the former oil tycoon previously seen as a threat to ex-president and current prime minister Vladimir Putin i.
Analysts also say that the charges - that the two men stole oil worth $27 billion, or several years' worth of their giant company's output - are prima facie ludicrous.
EU high representative for foreign affairs Catherine Ashton i has suggested the length of the new sentence could affect EU-Russia relations.
"The European Union will continue to follow developments very closely, including the forthcoming announcement of the sentence ... the EU expects Russia to respect its international commitments in the field of human rights and the rule of law," a spokesman for Ms Ashton said on Monday.
The announcement of the new sentence, only to be delivered once the judge reads through the lengthy verdict, could take several days. A heavy sentence could see the two men spend another six years in prison, once their current time behind bars expires next year.
The White House on Monday said it was "deeply concerned" about the guilty verdict, calling it a "selective application" of justice.
Berlin also voiced its opposition. "The way the trial has been conducted is extremely dubious and a step backward on the road toward a modernisation of the country," German foreign minister Guido Westerwelle said in a statement.
"It is in the interest of our Russian partners to take these concerns seriously and to stand up for the rule of law, democracy and human rights," he continued.
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