BUDAPEST, June 27 (Xinhua) -- A Hungarian court announced on Thursday that conditions for the extradition of former prime minister of North Macedonia Nikola Gruevski were not met, and thus will not be extradited to North Macedonia.
"The conditions for extradition, in view of the international arrest warrant and the North Macedonian extradition request, are not fulfilled," said Judge Eva Varhegyi, following a very quick one-hour trial, held behind closed doors.
The trial, of which only the verdict was public, was initiated according to the laws in force by the Hungarian prosecutor, who would be able to appeal the decision of the court, which is very unlikely.
Gruevski arrived with sunglasses and a cap, and refused to speak to the press. He left the court as a free man.
Since last autumn, Skopje has asked Budapest to hand over Nikola Gruevski, as he has been sentenced to two years in prison for corruption and the judiciary of North Macedonia also launched new proceedings against the former head of government in November 2018.
The Hungarian authorities granted political asylum to Gruevski last November.
