[20180724]LSB10176_与俄罗斯联邦的司法协助条约：草图.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the Russian Federation: A Sketch July 24, 2018 The recent indictment by Special Counsel Robert Mueller of twelve Russian intelligence officials for offenses related to interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election raises questions concerning the Russian Federations obligations to cooperate with U.S. prosecutorial efforts. Russian President Vladimir Putin indicated that assistance could be provided in accordance with the 1999 Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters between the United States and the Russian Federation (U.S.-Russia MLAT), which entered into force in 2002. This Legal Sidebar post provides an overview of mutual legal assistance treaties (MLATs) in general and a sketch of the terms of the U.S.-Russia MLAT in particular. The United States currently has MLATs with some 70 countries. In general, these agreements provide a means for acquiring evidence, witnesses, or other assistance in criminal matters from a foreign country, where domestic courts have no authority to issue subpoenas to foreign nationals, or grant search warr