The Foreign Ministry announced its intention to seek the return of archaeologist Butyagin to Russia.

The Russian side will seek the return of archaeologist Alexander Butyagin to his homeland. This was announced on March 18 by the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova.

The Warsaw District Court earlier that day issued a decision on Butyagin's extradition to Ukraine. The scientist's lawyers stated that there was no evidence of his destruction of archaeological sites in the case file, and the amount of damage had not been confirmed.

In Warsaw, a court approved the extradition of a Russian archaeologist to Ukraine. What is known

Butyagin's detention in Poland became known on December 11, 2025. The Ukrainian authorities were looking for him allegedly for illegal archaeological research in Crimea. On January 12, a journalist from Izvestia reported that the Warsaw District Court had decided to extend his arrest after the hearing on Butyagin's case. Later, a court in Poland refused to change the measure of restraint. The Russian Foreign Ministry pointed out that the accusations from Ukraine are absurd.

On January 15, the Warsaw District Court refused to postpone consideration of the case on the extradition of the Russian archaeologist to the territory of Ukraine. According to the lawyer, Butyagin did not agree with the admission of his extradition due to the fact that it poses a "threat to life and health." The Russian Embassy in Poland provides any possible assistance to the detainee.

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