Oligarch Dmytro Firtash, currently under house arrest in Austria, made a public appearance today. According to a Glavkom correspondent, the billionaire made a surprise appearance at the conference "Ukraine in Europe: Peace and Development," which is taking place today in Vienna. The event is organized by the German-Ukrainian Forum.
The conference's guests from Ukraine include former presidents Viktor Yushchenko and Leonid Kravchuk, Deputy Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, a member of the top ten in the Poroshenko Bloc, presidential adviser Maryna Stavniychuk, and Donetsk Governor Serhiy Taruta. According to the roundtable organizers, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko is also expected to arrive this evening. The mayor's press service confirmed to Glavkom that he is currently in Austria.

Among the guests at the event, currently taking place in the Wiener Hofburg conference hall, are also some of Yanukovych's associates, including Firtash's partner and friend, former Minister of Fuel and Energy Yuriy Boyko.
As a reminder, in March of this year, Austrian police detained Dmitry Firtash on the basis of a warrant issued by a US court at the request of the FBI. He was suspected, among other things, of bribery and the creation of a criminal organization.

According to investigators, starting in 2006, the group, led by Firtash, paid at least $18,5 million in bribes to obtain licenses to mine titanium-containing materials in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. If convicted, Firtash faces not only a lengthy prison sentence but also possible confiscation of all assets.
Firtash and his partners were subject to the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), which has jurisdiction beyond the United States.

Extradition proceedings were launched, but the oligarch remains in Vienna. Furthermore, Firtash was released on €125 million bail.
While awaiting trial, the oligarch promises to return to the country and is actively working not only to challenge American jurisdiction, but also to prove the groundlessness of the charges brought against him.
Glavcom
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