Kazakhstan clears way to extradite Chechen activist Mansur Movlaev to Russia, rights advocates to push for sanctions against Astana

Authorities in Kazakhstan are now effectively free to extradite Chechen activist Mansur Movlaev to Russia after a Kazakh cassation court upheld the denial of his asylum application, Margarita Kuchusheva, a consul with the Russian Antiwar Committee, told The Insider. Kuchusheva noted that emergency measures issued by the United Nations remain in force and called on Kazakhstan not to extradite Movlaev to Russia, but she added that there is no guarantee Astana will comply.

Kazakhstan’s Prosecutor General’s Office approved Movlaev’s extradition in early 2026, and the country’s Cassation Court for Administrative Cases confirmed the rulings of lower courts that had already denied him asylum. Kuchusheva, a human rights advocate working on Movlaev’s case, told The Insider that in practice the ruling means the Chechen activist could now be extradited at any time:

“Mansur can be extradited as soon as they agree with the Russian side on the crossing point where he will be handed over. Even if an appeal is filed with the Supreme Court, the extradition is not suspended. Moreover, there is no guarantee the Supreme Court will even agree to hear the case. From this moment — from the cassation ruling — extradition can happen at any time.

It is not very clear how Kazakhstan will treat the UN emergency measures, which effectively require the local authorities to halt the extradition. Will they fulfill their international obligations? That is far from certain. If they do not, we will work to formally document that, because this would amount to a very serious violation. We will help Mansur in every way possible.”

Kuchusheva said that if Astana sends Movlaev to Russia, rights advocates intend to push for sanctions against Kazakhstan in every jurisdiction available to them, including personal sanctions against judges and prosecutors.

“You cannot, on the one hand, participate in PACE and the OSCE and, on the other, extradite political activists to Russia — and in Mansur’s case, to Chechnya and certain death. That is unacceptable, and Kazakhstan should face public consequences for it.”

As The Insider reported in July, Russian activists Yulia Yemelyanova and Mansur Movlaev, both detained by Kazakh authorities, appealed to President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev directly asking him to stop their extradition to Russia. The Consuls of the Anti-War Committee, the International Society for Human Rights (ISHR/IGFM), and the Kovcheg (“Ark”) project also called on Tokayev to halt both extraditions, to release the activists, and to allow them to travel safely to third countries.

Earlier this year, The Insider also published a detailed report on the worsening situation for anti-war Russians seeking asylum or refuge both in Western countries and in former Soviet states. Human rights advocates interviewed for the report said Kazakhstan stood out as one of the most concerning countries and advised Russians at risk of political persecution not to travel there even in transit.

Movlaev faces criminal charges in Russia involving accusations of extortion and extremism. Yemelyanova, a former volunteer at the late Alexei Navalny’s headquarters in St. Petersburg, is wanted on a theft charge.