🇮🇹 Italy → 🇺🇦 Ukraine

The case concerned an extradition request by Ukraine for the prosecution of a Ukrainian national accused of aggravated misappropriation, bank fraud and forgery of an official document. The requested person opposed extradition, arguing, among other grounds, that the ongoing armed conflict in Ukraine exposed him to a real risk of death or inhuman or degrading treatment, and that his subsidiary protection status granted by Poland barred surrender. The Italian Supreme Court held that the mere existence of an armed conflict in the requesting State does not automatically preclude extradition. Rather, the executing court must carry out a concrete assessment of the actual risk faced by the requested person, taking into account the location of the detention facilities, their distance from active hostilities, the availability of protective measures, and reliable updated sources. In the present case, Ukraine had identified detention facilities located away from the areas of active conflict and equipped with shelters, while the available UN material showed only a low and non-specific risk in those areas. The Court further held that the CJEU case law concerning refugee status granted by another EU Member State does not apply to subsidiary protection. The appeal was therefore dismissed and the extradition order upheld.