NICE: Moscow on Wedn­e­sday protested at the arrest of billionaire senator Suleyman Kerimov in France, where he faced a second day of questioning over alleged tax evasion involving the purchase of luxury properties.

The Russian government summoned France’s deputy ambassador after Kerimov was detained upon arrival at the airport in the French Riviera resort of Nice on Monday night.

A source close to the probe said that Kerimov was accused of hiding tens of millions of euros from tax authorities while buying a string of properties on the glitzy Riviera through intermediaries.

His detention prompted angry Russian MPs to pass a resolution branding the arrest a violation of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Dipl­o­matic Relations, urging Mos­­­cow to press for his release.

“The senator status and the fact that he is a Russian citizen is a guarantee that we will, of course, put in all possible efforts to defend his lawful interests,” Krem­lin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. He stressed that Kerimov holds a diplomatic passport, though he is not believed to have used it when he flew in to Nice on personal business Monday.

France’s foreign ministry said Kerimov enjoys immunity from prosecution “only for actions carried out in the exercise of his functions”.

It will be “up to the judge hearing the case to decide” whether or not the allegations relate to his official role and are covered by immunity, a ministry spokesman said.

Published in Dawn, November 23rd, 2017