Under the agreement, the two countries undertake, on a reciprocal basis and provided the conditions set forth in the agreement are met, to provide legal assistance in investigations, court proceedings and other procedural action related to criminal cases. The agreement sets out the amount of legal assistance provided, the requirements to the form and content of requests for legal assistance, and procedures for acting on such requests.
The agreement contains rules different to those in Russia’s legislation. In particular, requests for legal assistance can be refused if acting on the request would harm the sovereignty, security, public law and order or other significant interest of the party to whom the request is made. Russia’s Criminal Procedure Code does not contain provisions for refusal of a request for legal assistance on such grounds.
The agreement does not apply to matters governed by the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union and is not in contradiction with any of Russia’s other international agreements.