The Supreme Court of Austria’s June 25 decision to approve the extradition of Ukrainian oligarch Dmytro Firtash to the U.S. on bribery charges could be a watershed moment for Ukraine, potentially having a major impact on the country’s political environment.
If extradited, Firtash may also give testimony on top Ukrainian officials and businesspeople involved in corruption. Firtash has denied all the accusations of wrongdoing.
“Once again the U.S. law enforcement system serves as an example for its Ukrainian equivalents on how to prosecute oligarchs,” Vitaly Shabunin, head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center’s executive board, told the Kyiv Post. “Even Austria with its penchant for some dubious capital flows can’t afford rejecting the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s request.”
However, it is far from certain that Firtash will be extradited. The oligarch has enjoyed close ties to top Austrian officials, and it is still up to Austrian Justice Minister Clemens Jabloner to authorize Firtash’s extradition.
Extradition requests
Austrian authorities arrested Firtash in 2014 after the U. S. Federal Bureau of Investigation charged him with paying $18.5 million to Indian officials in exchange for uranium mining licenses. Firtash was released upon paying $174 million in bail.
In 2015 a Vienna court rejected the U.S. extradition request, claiming that it was politically motivated.
However, in 2017 the Vienna Regional Criminal Court upheld an appeal against the ruling and backed Firtash’s extradition. The court argued that the U.S. tradition of democracy and rule of law would ensure Firtash’s rights to a fair trial.
“We are disappointed in today’s decision,” Firtash’s U.S. lawyers Dan Webb and Lanny Davis said in a statement on the Supreme Court’s June 25 ruling. “In any event, nothing has changed regarding Mr. Firtash’s innocence and the absence of evidence that he is guilty of any crime.”
Firtash’s U.S. lawyers said that they were “confident that a jury will find Mr. Firtash not guilty of all charges if and when he goes to trial.”
Meanwhile, Spain accuses Firtash of money laundering. However, in 2017 an Austrian court rejected Spain’s extradition request, citing insufficient evidence.
Austrian connections
Jabloner’s spokeswoman said he would wait for the court’s written ruling and would consult Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg before deciding about the extradition request. Firtash’s lawyer told a U.S. judge he could be in the U.S. as soon as early July, according to Bloomberg.
One of the apparent reasons why Firtash has managed to resist extradition for so long is his ties to top Austrian officials.
Austria’s Prosecutor General’s Office has effectively acted as his defense, disputing court decisions on the tycoon’s extradition and arguing that the U.S. case is politically motivated.
Firtash’s own defense team is led by former Austrian Justice Minister Dieter Boehmdorfer. Firtash’s spokesman Daniel Kapp has admitted having had “friendly contacts” with another ex-Austrian justice minister, Josef Moser, although he has denied discussing Firtash with him.
Moreover, Austria has very soft regulations on financial misdemeanors and is reluctant to examine the origin of capital, Shabunin argued.
As a result, Austria has become a safe haven for numerous Ukrainian and Russian former officials and businesspeople suspected of corruption.
Ukrainian scandals
In 2015, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry also opened a $273 million embezzlement case against executives of Firtash’s chemical firm Ostchem.
In 2011, a firm linked to Firtash and his partner Serhiy Lyovochkin bought state telecommunications giant Ukrtelecom for $1.3 billion. The buyout caused a huge scandal. The firm was the only bidder and its owners were unknown at the time.
Firtash has also been accused of siphoning massive amounts of the nation’s wealth by selling Russian and Turkmen gas in Ukraine through shady intermediaries called Eural TransGas and RosUkrEnergo.
However, Firtash has faced no official charges in Ukraine despite the investigations.
Shabunin argued that the Prosecutor General’s Office, which has been headed by ex-President Petro Poroshenko’s loyalists, had blocked all the investigations against Firtash. The prosecutor’s office has denied the accusations of sabotage.
“I hope that everything will drastically change after the incumbent prosecutor general is replaced or hopefully even jailed,” he added.
Political and business ties
Firtash was Ukraine’s 14th richest businessman in 2018 with $489 million, according to the Novoye Vremya magazine’s ranking. He owns Group DF, a conglomerate that includes regional gas distribution companies, titanium and fertilizer plants in Ukraine. The group also controls several Ukrainian television channels, including the Inter television channel.
The oligarch used to be an ally of ex-presidents Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych.
Firtash also testified in an Austrian court in 2015 that he had met with Poroshenko, then a presidential candidate, in Vienna in April 2014 and reached a deal to support his presidential bid. Poroshenko denies any such deal.
Currently, Firtash is an ally of the pro-Russian Opposition Platform-For Life party. The group is led by Firtash’s partner and Yanukovych’s ex-Chief of Staff Serhiy Lyovochkin, Vadym Rabynovych and Putin’s right-hand man in Ukraine, Viktor Medvedchuk.
Firtash also has Russian partners, including Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s ally Arkady Rotenberg. A Rotenberg ally, Vasily Anisimov, lent Firtash the money to post 125 million euros in bail in Austria. Meanwhile, Russia’s Gazprombank has financed Firtash’s projects.
