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Diplomat warns Norway's decision to extradite Russian to US to affect Moscow-Oslo ties

On November 29, Norway made the final decision to extradite Russian citizen Mark Vartanyan to the US following a request from the US

© EPA/BERIT ROALD

MOSCOW, November 30. /TASS/. Oslo’s decision to extradite Russian citizen Mark Vartanyan to the US will undoubtedly affect the relations between Russia and Norway, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

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Diplomat: Russian citizens’ extradition by third countries upon US requests unacceptable

"On November 29, Norway made the final decision to extradite Russian citizen Mark Vartanyan to the US following a request from American law enforcement agencies," the diplomat said. "Thus Norway refused to heed Russia’s repeated calls for an impartial, objective approach."

"We have explained many times that this case was part of the US secret services’ global pursuit to hunt down Russian citizens," Zakharova noted. "This manhunt has nothing to do with the genuine interests of justice, on the contrary it is a violation of international law."

"This decision is clearly politicized and not consistent with the universally recognized principles of justice," the Russian diplomat stressed saying that "we will take it into account while developing bilateral relations with Norway."

According to the US secret services, Vartanyan, a Russian programmer, uploaded 48 files to the Internet in order to install the Citadel virus and control other peoples’ computers. Vartanyan has pleaded not guilty, stating he never uploaded those files.

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