MOSCOW, July 20. /TASS/. Russia has asked US officials to provide explanations regarding the extension of the prison term of Russian citizen Viktor Bout convicted in the US, Russian Foreign Ministry Deputy spokesman Artyom Kozhin said on Thursday.

"The jail term for Viktor Bout convicted in the US has been extended for several weeks for some violations of prison regime," he said. "We have already contacted US officials asking them to provide explanations."

Kozhin emphasized that Russia is keeping a close eye on the fate of the Russian national. "Blatant arbitrariness began when Bout was secretly detained in Bangkok in 2008," he noted. "We have repeatedly raised the issue with Washington regarding the admissibility of the actual abductions of Russian citizens in third countries, and Bout was a victim of such actions." "However, the Americans continue to refuse to release the abducted Russian citizens turning this practice into an additional tool of pressure on Russia," the diplomat added.