Putin gives Russian citizenship to a Serb accused of war crimes

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree granting Russian citizenship to Ratko Samac, who was charged with war crimes in Kljuc in the 1990s and whose extradition was requested by Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH).

Former Republika Srpska Army officer (RS) Samac is the 29th person on the list of 44 foreign citizens to whom Putin granted Russian citizenship by decree published on January 9, 2024, writes Radio Free Europe.

In 2016, Russia rejected the BiH Ministry of Justice's request to extradite Ratko Samac, who was charged with the triple murder of civilians in Banja Luka in 1993 and war crimes against the civilian population in Kljuc.

He has been living in Russia since 1999, according to reports by Russian media that Radio Free Europe (RFE) could not independently confirm.

Samac went to Kurgan in the southern Urals in 1999, where he was arrested in 2016, as Sputnik reported at the time, given BiH's request for a war crimes order.

The then-human rights lawyer, Ela Pamfilova, asked prosecutors to conduct an investigation into the extradition request.

After that, it was no longer written for SAMAC.

In 2016, Sputnik also announced that after leaving for Russia, Samac first received a permit for temporary residence in that country and that in September 2015 his stay was extended until 2020.

This too could not be confirmed independently.

Samac is accused of serious human rights violations because of crimes committed against civilians in the Kljuci area in western Bosnia during the 1990s war.

“We have information that Ratko Samac is currently in Russia,” said Jelena Miljeviić, secretary general of the Cantonal Court in Bihaq, for the Balkan Research Network B IERN in 2016, adding that there is a red Interpol order for him.

At the end of March 2016, the BiH Ministry of Justice urged Russia to extradite Samac to face war crimes charges following the tribunal's request in BiH, Ministry spokeswoman Marina Bakiq told BIRN at the time.

In addition to the prosecution of war crimes in 2016, the BiH Ministry of Justice announced that Samac was also charged with killing civilians Hamdija Vuckic, his wife Dervisa Vuckic and Mina Talic in 1993.

During the expulsion of the non-Serb population in Kljuc in 1992, according to court institutions in BiH data, more than 150 Bosnian civilians were killed, and some were arrested and beaten illegally.

The list of foreigners who were granted citizenship by the Russian president is included, among other things, Croatian physician Mirela Jakupanc, who supported the Russian invasion of the Ukrainian region of Donetsk and lives there, professional American boxer Kevin Johnson, who is a friend of the Kremlin, as well. and Canadian hockey player Brendan Leipic, who plays for Club SKA from St. Petersburg.