WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th December, 2018) Russian diplomats called on the United States to improve the conditions of jailed Russian citizen Maria Butina after visiting her in prison, the Russian Embassy in Washington said in a press release on Wednesday.
"We demand humane conditions for Maria," the press release said, noting that Butina is being held in isolation for 22 hours a day.
Russian diplomats will attend Butina's change of plea hearing, which will take place on December 13, the release added.
Both Butina's lawyers and Federal prosecutors requested the hearing at the US District Court for the District of Columbia so that Butina can change the plea in her criminal case.
Butina previously pleaded "not guilty" to charges of conspiracy and failing to register as a foreign agent, insisting that she has done nothing wrong. Russia has also said that the charges against Butina are completely groundless.
But US media reports in recent days have said that Butina will change her plea as part of an agreement that she reached with federal prosecutors. The deal with see her receive a reduced sentence in exchange for cooperating with prosecutors in their ongoing investigations, the reports said.
The reported plea deal comes after Butina has spent months in prison, held mostly in isolation.
In November, Butina pleaded with the court to be moved into the prison's general population, so that she could interact with other people instead of spending all of her time alone. At the time of her request on November 27, she had been kept in solitary confinement for 67 straight days, according to court filings. The court denied her request.
Butina's father has called his daughter's treatment "torture," saying the harsh tactics were designed to force her to confess to crimes she did not commit.
Russian authorities have criticized the US government for arresting Butina, insisting that the charges against her are groundless. The Russian Foreign Ministry has said the charges against Butina were trumped-up and has called her ongoing detention unacceptable.
