MOSCOW, August 16. /TASS/. The defense team of US national Paul Whelan, convicted in Russia on espionage charges, will soon request the Moscow City Court to transfer him to the United States to serve his remaining term, lawyer Olga Karlova told TASS.

"A request on Whelan’s transfer to the US is ready. We will file it with the Moscow City Court before the end of the week. In fact, it depends on the two countries’ goodwill if it will be granted. If there is an agreement between Russia and the United States, then a judge will make a ruling based on that. We are filing the request with high hopes for success," she said.

Karlova also emphasized that the defense team had been unable to contact Whelan on the phone though they had the right to do so. "I have filed a complaint with the prosecution, demanding that authorities at the penal colony where Whelan is serving his sentence should allow us to speak with our client," the lawyer added.

Whelan, who holds US, British, Canadian and Irish passports, was detained by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) in Moscow on December 28, 2018, while on a spy mission. A criminal case was opened against him under Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code (espionage). The Moscow City Court eventually sentenced Whelan to 16 years in a high-security penal colony.