The international human rights organization Amnesty International has called on the Georgian authorities not to forcibly return Russian citizen Denis Kulanin to his homeland. In connection with the situation surrounding the Russian national, who was convicted in Tbilisi and subsequently pardoned by the president, Denis Krivosheev, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, issued a special statement.
“Denis Kulanin has publicly opposed Russia’s war against Ukraine and expressed support for Aleksei Navalny — both of which are treated as crimes punishable by imprisonment in Russia. The Georgian authorities must ensure he is not deported to Russia, where amid the current climate of harsh repression against anti-war dissent, he would face a real risk of arbitrary prosecution and imprisonment, torture or other ill-treatment.”
Amnesty reiterates that Georgia is bound by the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits the transfer of anyone to a country where they would face a real risk of serious human rights violations. Tbilisi must also ensure that Kulanin is given an effective opportunity to seek international protection, including voluntary departure to a safe third country.
“The Georgian authorities must also ensure that Denis Kulanin is given an effective opportunity to seek international protection, including voluntary departure to a safe third country,” Denis Krivosheev emphasized.
As a reminder, Kulanin was detained on 28 March 2025 on Rustaveli Avenue on charges of damaging a vehicle belonging to the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) and was sentenced to two years in prison. On 28 August, President Mikheil Kavelashvili pardoned 226 prisoners — all were released except for the Russian national. Following a ruling by the Tbilisi City Court, pending the completion of expulsion proceedings, he was transferred to the Migration Department’s Temporary Accommodation Center.
On 1 September, Kulanin was scheduled to voluntarily depart Georgia for Armenia after his lawyers submitted his plane ticket, passport, and boarding pass to the court and the Temporary Accommodation Center. However, as Amnesty International noted, the court’s decision “prevented him from voluntarily leaving Georgia for Armenia and raised fears that the authorities instead plan to hand him over to Russia.”
