Moscow court to summon Foreign Minister Lavrov, MoD spokesman Konashenkov, rep to UN Nebenzya as witnesses in activist’s trial over ‘fake news’

A court in Moscow’s Timiryazevsky district has issued subpoenas requiring Russia’s Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and Russia’s representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya to appear in court as witnesses, RBC cites the court.

The three will need to provide statements as witnesses in a case accusing Dmitry Ivanov, an activist, of “spreading fake news about the Russian army”.

“The defence has petitioned to interrogate the mentioned individuals. The court has issued subpoenas, however, it is the defence that will be required to make sure these individuals attend the court session. The court has not directly summoned them to appear mandatorily,” the court’s public relations department says.

The district court granted the motion by Ivanov’s defence yesterday. Maria Eysmont, the defence attorney, says that Lavrov, Konashenkov, and Nebenzya are witnesses in legal terms since their points of view are considered uncompromisingly correct by the court.

The court also prolonged Ivanov’s pre-trial detention for three more months. He was requesting to be put under house arrest instead.

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Dmitry Ivanov is accused of spreading false information about the Russian army. His posts about the murders of civilians in Ukraine and destruction of Ukraine’s infrastructure, as well as his refusal to call the Ukraine War “a special military operation” were the reasons behind the criminal procedure.