Vienna, 11/10/2016
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) called on Russian authorities to immediately release Ukrainian journalist Roman Suschenko, after he was arrested by the Russian intelligence agency due to accusations of spying on armed forces in the country.
Suschenko’s arrest was ordered on 1 October by the Moscow Lefortovsky Court, after being accused of allegedly “collecting information on the activities of the Russian Armed forces and the National Guard troops”, with the court claiming that if leaked abroad, the data may harm state defense capabilities. Russian authorities have launched a criminal case against Suschenko based on charges of espionage.
“We call on the authorities to immediately release Suschenko, and drop all and any charges against him. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have been at an all-time high for an extended period of time, and we ask them to revise this situation and release the journalist” Oliver Vujovic, SEEMO secretary general said.