The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharov called the number of Russians arrested and prisoners in Belarus – it exceeds 700 people. So she answered the question of the correspondent of “Renta.ru”.
Total in custody are 785 Russian citizens. Of these, 94 are in the status of suspects, 163 – accused, and 528 – serving a sentence. According to Zakharova, the diplomats “hold on control” each of these cases and provide consular assistance to Russians.
“We do not make a difference, for us a citizen of Russia must have the right to protect his rights and obtain the appropriate support for our clutter,” the representative of the Foreign Ministry said.
In addition, she commented on the detention of Russian Dmitry Popov detained by Belarusian security forces for communication with the opposition. Zakharova stated that consular officers were already visited. They also contact Popov’s lawyer.
June 29 reported that the man is located in Minsk SIZO No. 3. He fell there after the detention of the Belarusian blogger and the oppositionist Sergey Tikhanovsky before the start of mass protests in August 2020. In his team, Popov was engaged in SMM and the moderation of social networks. A year after the arrest, the Russian managed to send a letter to his relatives, in which he declared a betrayal from Russian diplomats and authorities.