Boris Abramovich Kuznetsov
Encyclopedia
Boris Avramovich Kuznetsov (Кузнецов, Борис Аврамович, born 1944) is a prominent Russia
n lawyer who has acted in many notable criminal and human rights cases, and who has been persecuted by the Russian authorities. He left Russia in 2007 and in February 2008 was granted asylum in the US. His absence caused the case against him to be suspended in April. It was restarted in July, before again being abandoned in May 2009. He has sought redress against the Russian authorities in the European Court of Human Rights
.
Kuznetsov represented the families of the 118 sailors killed in the Kursk nuclear submarine
, relatives of murdered journalist Anna Politkovskaya
, scientist Igor Sutyagin
jailed on espionage charges, NGO director Manana Aslamazyan and many others. Kuznetsov also represented KGB General Oleg Kalugin
in his lawsuit against USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev
in 1990, who had stripped Kalugin of awards and General rank for exposing KGB
operations.
In the course of defending his client, Federation Council
member Levon Chakhmakhchyan, he submitted a document to the Russian Constitutional Court
about the Russian Federal Security Service's
illegal wiretaps of Chakhmakhchyan's phone conversations. Based on that, Kuznetsov was prosecuted for allegedly revealing state top secret
s. The criminal case against Kuznetsov was initiated on the personal request of Federal Security Service director Nikolai Patrushev.
Kuznetsov responded: "I was simply carrying out my duty...I found documents that talked about wiretapping not just a common citizen, but a member of the Federation Council. I did as much as I could to make sure that fact was exposed and proven. And it was precisely that memorandum, marked 'secret,' that contained evidence that [security services] knew who they were eavesdropping on. And I sent it not to [Israel's] Mossad [intelligence agency] or the CIA, but to the Constitutional Court."
According to Kuznetsov, he was wrongly accused for angering the FSB:
"I think there was an element of revenge in this for the book I published two years ago, but most probably it was done to exclude me from several cases, such as the case of [Educated Media Foundation chief] Manana Aslamazyan," Kuznetsov said. "I also represent the interests of [Anna] Politkovskaya's family; I don't rule out that it had to do with the case of Vladimir Khutsishvili, accused of killing [former Rosbiznesbank chief] Ivan Kivelidi, because it's perfectly plain that security services were involved in those cases in one way or another."
Yulia Latynina
criticized Kuznetsov for defending criminals. She also stated that his former client, scientist Igor Sutyagin
could have passed information to a front company of a spy agency without knowing the final recipient. Kuznetsov replied that Sutyagin had not passed secrets and that Latynina had denigrated those who opposed abuses by the Russian secret service FSB
.
, alleging that the Russian authorities covered up the facts of the disaster, and is the author of six other books.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n lawyer who has acted in many notable criminal and human rights cases, and who has been persecuted by the Russian authorities. He left Russia in 2007 and in February 2008 was granted asylum in the US. His absence caused the case against him to be suspended in April. It was restarted in July, before again being abandoned in May 2009. He has sought redress against the Russian authorities in the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
.
Kuznetsov represented the families of the 118 sailors killed in the Kursk nuclear submarine
Russian submarine K-141 Kursk
K-141 Kursk was an Oscar-II class nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine of the Russian Navy, lost with all hands when it sank in the Barents Sea on August 12, 2000...
, relatives of murdered journalist Anna Politkovskaya
Anna Politkovskaya
Anna Stepanovna Politkovskaya was a Russian journalist, author, and human rights activist known for her opposition to the Chechen conflict and then-President of Russia Vladimir Putin...
, scientist Igor Sutyagin
Igor Sutyagin
Igor V. Sutyagin is a Russian arms control and nuclear weapons specialist. In 1998 he became the head of the subdivision for Military-Technical and Military-Economic Policy at the Institute for US and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, where he worked before he was...
jailed on espionage charges, NGO director Manana Aslamazyan and many others. Kuznetsov also represented KGB General Oleg Kalugin
Oleg Kalugin
Oleg Danilovich Kalugin , is a former KGB general. He was a longtime head of KGB operations in the United States and later a critic of the agency.-Early life and the KGB career:...
in his lawsuit against USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
in 1990, who had stripped Kalugin of awards and General rank for exposing KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
operations.
In the course of defending his client, Federation Council
Federation Council
Federation Council may refer to:* Federation Council of Russia, the upper house of the Federal Assembly of Russia* Federation Council , an organization in the fictional Star Trek universe-See also:...
member Levon Chakhmakhchyan, he submitted a document to the Russian Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation
The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation is a high court which is empowered to rule on whether or not certain laws or presidential decrees are in fact contrary to the Constitution of Russia...
about the Russian Federal Security Service's
FSB (Russia)
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation is the main domestic security agency of the Russian Federation and the main successor agency of the Soviet Committee of State Security . Its main responsibilities are counter-intelligence, internal and border security, counter-terrorism, and...
illegal wiretaps of Chakhmakhchyan's phone conversations. Based on that, Kuznetsov was prosecuted for allegedly revealing state top secret
Top Secret
Top Secret generally refers to the highest acknowledged level of classified information.Top Secret may also refer to:- Film and television :* Top Secret , a British comedy directed by Mario Zampi...
s. The criminal case against Kuznetsov was initiated on the personal request of Federal Security Service director Nikolai Patrushev.
Kuznetsov responded: "I was simply carrying out my duty...I found documents that talked about wiretapping not just a common citizen, but a member of the Federation Council. I did as much as I could to make sure that fact was exposed and proven. And it was precisely that memorandum, marked 'secret,' that contained evidence that [security services] knew who they were eavesdropping on. And I sent it not to [Israel's] Mossad [intelligence agency] or the CIA, but to the Constitutional Court."
According to Kuznetsov, he was wrongly accused for angering the FSB:
"I think there was an element of revenge in this for the book I published two years ago, but most probably it was done to exclude me from several cases, such as the case of [Educated Media Foundation chief] Manana Aslamazyan," Kuznetsov said. "I also represent the interests of [Anna] Politkovskaya's family; I don't rule out that it had to do with the case of Vladimir Khutsishvili, accused of killing [former Rosbiznesbank chief] Ivan Kivelidi, because it's perfectly plain that security services were involved in those cases in one way or another."
Yulia Latynina
Yulia Latynina
Yulia Leonidovna Latynina is a Russian journalist, writer and radio host. She works at the radio station Echo of Moscow. She also writes for Novaya Gazeta and The Moscow Times.-Writer, journalist and radio host:...
criticized Kuznetsov for defending criminals. She also stated that his former client, scientist Igor Sutyagin
Igor Sutyagin
Igor V. Sutyagin is a Russian arms control and nuclear weapons specialist. In 1998 he became the head of the subdivision for Military-Technical and Military-Economic Policy at the Institute for US and Canadian Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, where he worked before he was...
could have passed information to a front company of a spy agency without knowing the final recipient. Kuznetsov replied that Sutyagin had not passed secrets and that Latynina had denigrated those who opposed abuses by the Russian secret service FSB
FSB (Russia)
The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation is the main domestic security agency of the Russian Federation and the main successor agency of the Soviet Committee of State Security . Its main responsibilities are counter-intelligence, internal and border security, counter-terrorism, and...
.
Books
Kuznetsov has published a book about the sinking of the Russian nuclear submarine KurskRussian submarine K-141 Kursk
K-141 Kursk was an Oscar-II class nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine of the Russian Navy, lost with all hands when it sank in the Barents Sea on August 12, 2000...
, alleging that the Russian authorities covered up the facts of the disaster, and is the author of six other books.
Sources
- Kuznetsov in American Russian Law Institute directory
- Russia: Prominent Lawyer Flees Country, Fearing Prosecution, by RFE/RL
- US lawyers hired as spin doctors for Russian mob
- How Inkobank duped American investors, Russia Bulletin
- Manana Aslamazyan case, publication by the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union