Blogger Klimenchenko challenged the refusal to grant asylum in Armenia.
Kuban blogger Valery Klimenchenko filed an appeal against the decision of the Yerevan court, which dismissed his lawsuit against the Migration Service that refused to grant the blogger asylum in Armenia.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", in April it became known that the court in Yerevan dismissed the lawsuit of Kuban blogger Valery Klimenchenko against the Migration Service, which refused to grant Klimenchenko asylum in Armenia. The court justified its decision by stating that the lawsuit lacked the signature of the plaintiff himself, who intended to appear in court through an interpreter.
Valery Klimenchenko, who served time for justifying terrorism, left Russia in March 2024 despite a travel ban and arrived in Armenia, where he requested political asylum. The Migration Service denied him, believing that his return to Russia posed no risks.
Valery Klimenchenko informed a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" today that he received a translation of the court's decision to dismiss his lawsuit.
"The lawsuit of Valery Sergeyevich Klimenchenko against the Migration and Citizenship Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Armenia regarding the obligation to adopt a favorable administrative act recognizing Valery Sergeyevich Klimenchenko, a citizen of the Russian Federation, as a refugee and granting him asylum in the Republic of Armenia is dismissed. The issue of state obligation is considered resolved," he quoted the translation of the court's decision.
According to the document, the decision comes into force one month after its publication and can be appealed within the same period in the Administrative Court of Appeals. "This is stated in the translation of the decision of the first-instance administrative court regarding my lawsuit," Klimenchenko reported.
He clarified that the appeal against this decision has already been filed.
The blogger believes that he has been unjustly persecuted in Russia. "For my authored article on the internet and for insulting representatives of the authorities, I was accused of committing a crime under part 2 of article 205.2 (public justification of terrorism) and article 319 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for two episodes (insulting representatives of the authorities). I did not admit my guilt under part 2 of article 205.2 and for one episode of article 319 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Nevertheless, I was imprisoned for my opinion for more than four years, meaning I have already served time under the terrorism article. In addition, Rosfinmonitoring officially included my name in the terrorist registry and [...] unconstitutional economic sanctions were imposed on me, in particular, a ban on notarial transactions with my inherited property. My attempts to litigate against the FSB of Russia and Rosfinmonitoring were completely ignored by the Tbilisi District Court of the Krasnodar Territory, where I filed a lawsuit, as well as various complaints to the FSIN of Russia regarding inhumane conditions of detention in prison," Klimenchenko said.
The Migration Service of Armenia concluded that Klimenchenko's persecution in Russia is not related to race, religion, nationality, political beliefs, or membership in a social group, but rather to lawful criminal prosecution for crimes, and his actions do not fall under the grounds for refugee status. The Service noted that after his release in 2023, Klimenchenko lived in Russia until March 2024 without serious threats, which reduces the validity of his fears of persecution.
It should be noted that Valery Klimenchenko was under administrative supervision in Russia, which prohibited him from leaving the country. In 2019, he was accused of justifying terrorism for a publication on social media and for insulting government authorities. In 2020, Klimenchenko received four years and one month of imprisonment, and after his release in 2023 - eight years of administrative supervision.
Earlier, Klimenchenko reported that he did not comply with the conditions of supervision. Moreover, according to him, almost immediately after his release, he continued "to engage in opposition political activities on the internet," speaking out against Vladimir Putin.
"Considering that, according to the decisions of the first and second instance courts, I am prohibited from administering internet pages for two years, and taking into account the repressive legal system in Russia, I could face real problems under Russian criminal law, at least for non-compliance with the court's verdict. Furthermore, at present, I have learned from my relatives that I have been placed on the federal wanted list for non-compliance with administrative supervision. All these risks were not taken into account in the decision of the Migration Service of the Republic of Armenia," he told "Caucasian Knot" in June 2025.