The French National Asylum Court (CNDA) for the first time decided to grant asylum to a Russian citizen who was threatened by mobilization in his homeland, writes “Kommersant”.
The Russian, whose name has not been released, went to court after being refused asylum by the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA).
Last year, after being refused by OFPRA, the 27-year-old Russian went to court, but then the court found his arguments unconvincing.
This time, the existence of a subpoena served on the Russian helped convince the court, lawyer Yulia Yamova told Kommersant. According to her, the judges were convinced that a graduate of a Russian university, enrolled in the reserve after graduating from the military department, could indeed be called up to participate in military operations.
“For a long time, the French authorities could not believe that a person who had never served in the army and had not undergone proper training was subject to conscription and sent to the front,” Yamova said.
The lawyer added that this time the French court also took into account the opinions of experts who believe that the recruitment campaign as part of the “partial mobilization” was carried out in 2022 with numerous violations of the law: “For example, in formal non-wartime, the right to alternative civil service was not provided.
According to Yamova, after the introduction of electronic subpoenas in Russia, it will be easier to prove in court in France the existence of a threat of mobilization – those wishing to receive asylum as proof of military service will only need to have an electronic copy of the subpoena in the state offices .
