VZCZCXRO2907
PP RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHSI #2276/01 3561423
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 221423Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY TBILISI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2626
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 4971

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TBILISI 002276 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/21/2010 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUMRU RU GG
SUBJECT: GEORGIA: RUSSIAN SERVICEMAN SEEKS ASYLUM IN GEORGIA 
 
REF: TBILISI 001237 
 
Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Kent Logsdon for reasons 1.4 (b) 
 and (d) 
 
¶1.  (C)  Summary.  According to Ministry of Refugee Affairs 
(MRA) officials, a Russian contract soldier, Vitaliy Khripun, 
crossed the administrative border line (ABL) from the 
breakaway region of South Ossetia into undisputed Georgia 
December 20.  The European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) 
and United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) have 
been involved in the case since the soldier first crossed the 
ABL.  Khripun is currently in Tbilisi and has begun the 
process of seeking asylum in Georgia.  Russian officials are 
seeking consular access to Khripun.  Little is known about 
the family background of the serviceman, despite various 
press reports about family members.  This is the third 
defection by a Russian soldier since the August 2008 war (ref 
A).  The asylum seeking process in Georgia takes 
approximately four months and the previous two Russian asylum 
seekers were both granted asylum and are now resident in 
Tbilisi.  End Summary. 
 
Khripun Crosses the ABL, Alcohol May Have Been a Motivator 
 
¶2.  (C)   MRA told emboff that Khripun is a 25 year old 
Russian contractor with the Russian "border protection army" 
(sic), part of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and 
has been employed as such since 2008. Khripun appeared in a 
police station on the undisputed Georgian side of the ABL not 
far from the Perevi checkpoint on December 20, and was 
reportedly inebriated at the time.  He slept in a police 
station for a number of hours, and when he awoke said he did 
not want to return to South Ossetia or Russia. The Georgians 
contacted the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MOIA) 
who in turn contacted the Ministry of Refugees and 
Accommodation (MRA).  The MRA brought Khripun to Tbilisi on 
December 21, where he was interviewed by an MRA asylum 
specialist with a UNHCR asylum specialist present.  In the 
preliminary interview Khripun declared his intention to begin 
the asylum process, and after the interview MRA and UNHCR 
worked together to coordinate private lodging in Tbilisi, as 
the standard refugee center was deemed unsafe in such a 
sensitive situation. UNHCR is funding the private 
accommodations.  Georgian press got wind of the situation the 
evening of December 21 and began publicizing the Russian's 
defection, including reporting from the MRA. 
 
Russians Activate Hotline; EUMM Interviews Khripun 
 
¶3.  (C)  On December 22, Khripun was interviewed again by the 
MRA as well as representatives of the European Union 
Monitoring Mission (EUMM).  The EUMM's role is unclear and 
the EUMM Human Rights Officer who did the interview said only 
that the meeting was held because EUMM was concerned about 
what the outcome of the case will be.  Another EUMM official, 
the Head of Operations, was contacted by Russian officials 
via the hotline and was asked to meet with the head of the 
FSB working in South Ossetia in Ergneti, a village in 
undisputed Georgia next to the ABL and very close to 
Tskhinvali.  At this meeting the EUMM official was asked to 
help facilitate a meeting between the Russian serviceman and 
a consular representative of the Russian interest section in 
Tbilisi. The EUMM official conveyed the message to the asylum 
seeker who is considering a meeting with a Russian consular 
official. The EUMM confirmed that the soldier is continuing 
the asylum process. 
 
¶4.  (C)  Russian and Georgian press reports have been telling 
Q4.  (C)  Russian and Georgian press reports have been telling 
various stories about the background of the servceman, his 
family, and his intentions.  Thus far according to UNHCR and 
EUMM the serviceman has not yet met with his family, although 
they could not confirm whether he has been in contact with 
them by phone.  Although not focused on personal information, 
UNHCR officials believe that the serviceman is unmarried and 
has contact with his mother and sister.  Though some media 
reports have circulated about the serviceman's father, EUMM 
reports that his father died in 2002. 
 
¶5.  (C)  UNHCR independently confirmed December 22 that the 
serviceman is continuing to proceed with the asylum process, 
and expects that his next interview will not take place until 
January.  The process of seeking asylum in Georgia takes 
about four months, so the resolution of this case will not 
come within the next few days.  A UNHCR official also 
commented that the Georgians are, in general, handling the 
case well, and seem to have learned from previous cases how 
to better handle these delicate situations. 
 
Update on Previous Asylum Requests 
 
 
TBILISI 00002276  002 OF 002 
 
 
¶6.  (C)  The previous two asylum seekers (ref A) were both 
granted asylum by the Georgian government and possess 
Georgian residency permits. The MRA reports that they live in 
Tbilisi, though the asylees are not required to report their 
whereabouts to the MRA and are free to travel in Georgia as 
they wish. 
BASS