The Russian Federation has withdrawn from the European Convention against Torture. The decree to this effect was signed by the Kremlin leader, Vladimir Putin, reports IPN.

Therefore, Moscow will no longer be obliged to allow access to its prisons by international inspectors, and prisoners in Russian jails will no longer be able to file complaints with the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture.

In August, the Russian government proposed to Vladimir Putin that the country officially refuse to comply with the European Convention against Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and a resolution to this effect was signed at the time by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The reasons for the initiative were not specified.

Typically, the publication of the institution’s reports on the situation of torture in a certain country does not always occur, and the state itself may contest the findings. The Committee has previously published several reports on Russia’s violations of the convention. These have included cases from Chechnya, psychiatric hospitals, Russian prisons, or accounts of the torture of suspects from the terrorist attack at the “Crocus City Hall” concert venue in March 2024.

The latest report was published in November 2024 about the death of opposition figure Alexei Navalny, who was held in detention in the “Polar Wolf” penitentiary colony in the Arctic region. Navalny had repeatedly reported conditions of detention akin to torture. In the case related to Navalny, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs labeled the issues raised by the Committee as being “politicized” and “ambiguous”, stating that Russia is being “blackmailed”.

The Convention against Torture was adopted in 1987. Russia ratified the act in 1996, when it became a member of the Council of Europe.