The ECHR demanded that Russia, by July 31, justify the conscription into the army of FBK employee Ionov, who suffers from asthma.

The European Court of Human Rights has demanded that the Russian authorities answer questions regarding the complaint about the conscription into the army of Artem Ionov, an employee of the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), who was diagnosed with asthma. The ECHR’s response was published on Facebook by the director of the foundation, Ivan Zhdanov.

The court's response states that the ECHR will consider the complaint as a priority as soon as the Russian authorities answer whether the responsible departments knew about Ionov's asthma, whether this disease is considered a sufficient basis for exemption from military service, whether the conditions in the unit where the applicant was sent correspond to his current health status, and whether he has access to the necessary medical care and medications.

The Russian authorities must provide answers to the relevant questions by July 31.

Ionov was involved in weekly broadcasts of the program on the YouTube channel of politician Alexei Navalny “Russia of the Future”. At the end of June, the military registration and enlistment office of the Moscow region sent an FBK employee to the army. The foundation said that the young man was kidnapped near his home, his communications were taken away, and a lawyer was not allowed to see him. Ionov was sent to serve in Chukotka.

In the same way, FBK employee Ruslan Shaveddinov was sent to serve in the army. Security forces came to his home in December 2019. Shaveddinov did not make contact for a day, and then it became known that he was sent to serve on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago in the Arctic Ocean.