The German Embassy in Moscow has confirmed to Sputnik that Mathias Roth, the embassy's first secretary, attended a court hearing in Moscow this week to observe the trials of two Russian nationals, arrested for violating public order during the July 27 unauthorized rally in the Russian capital
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st August, 2019) The German Embassy in Moscow has confirmed to Sputnik that Mathias Roth, the embassy's first secretary, attended a court hearing in Moscow this week to observe the trials of two Russian nationals, arrested for violating public order during the July 27 unauthorized rally in the Russian capital.On Monday, Russian media reported that several foreign diplomats, including Roth and Giedrius Galkauskas, minister counsellor of the Lithuanian Embassy to Moscow, attended trials at a Moscow court for defendants Sergei Fomin and Danila Beglets, who were appealing their arrests. The court has ruled to keep both of them in custody.
"In accordance with the rights of ambassadors and international practice, the Embassy's staff [members] regularly take part in selective open court hearings in the capacity of observers. The court cases mentioned are connected with responsibilities that Russia has undertaken as a member of the Council of Europe and OSCE [Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe] in order to implement the standards applicable in the field of human rights and the rule of law," the embassy's press service said, when asked to confirm Roth's attendance at Beglets and Fomin's hearing.
Around 3,500 people attended an unsanctioned rally in downtown Moscow on July 27 to support independent nominees who were disqualified from running in the city's legislative elections. Over 1,000 people were detained, with the Investigative Committee opening criminal cases connected to mass civil unrest and assaults against police officers. An unauthorized protest rally also took place on August 3, 1,500 people joined and about 600 were detained.
After Berlin called on Moscow to release protesters, claiming that their arrests were not consistent with the peaceful nature of the rally, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused German diplomats and media of meddling in Russia's domestic affairs. Zakharova also said that the US Embassy in Moscow attempted to interfere by publishing a map with the route for the August 3 unauthorized rally on its official website, while urging people to avoid the march.
