MOSCOW, January 9. /TASS/. Convicts can be pardoned only in accordance with Russia’s laws and under a presidential decree, presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

According to media reports, the first group of former convicts contracted by the Wagner private military company have finished their six-month contracts and have been granted clemency.

"You know that a pardon can be granted only by a presidential decree. From the point of view of the legislation, there is a certain procedure, which begins at penitentiary facilities themselves, some paperwork, which continues at the regional and federal levels to be finalized by a presidential decree. I can only say that, naturally, any pardoning can be executed only in strict compliance with law," Peskov told journalists when asked whether the president had pardoned former convicts fighting for the Wagner company.

When asked whether the Kremlin could confirm such cases, he stressed that "pardoning is granted in strict compliance with law."

Under Russia’s constitution, the president has the right to pardon persons convicted by Russian courts or convicted abroad but serving their terms in Russia. Clemency can be granted to both Russian nationals and foreigners or stateless persons. Under article 85 of the Russian Criminal Code, only "a concrete individual" can be pardoned. When pardoned, a convict can be relieved from further serving his or her sentence or a sentence can be commuted. Apart from that, those who have already served their sentences can have the record of their conviction expunged.

Four people have been pardoned by the president since 2020: three Russian nationals were granted clemency on February 14, 2020 and Israeli national Naama Issachar was also pardoned in February of the same year.