KIEV, July 15. /TASS/. Russian Ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova will arrive in Kiev to attend the hearing of RIA Novosti Ukraine Editor-in-Chief Kirill Vyshinsky’s case on Monday, the Russian embassy in Ukraine told TASS.

"Russian Ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova will arrive in Kiev today, on July 15, to attend the hearing of Vyshinsky’s case," a spokesperson for the embassy said.

The Ukrainian Security Service detained Vyshinsky on May 15, 2018 on the charges of treason and illegal gun trafficking. The Kherson city court arrested him for 2 months on May 17, and later the arrest was extended several times. Vyshinsky denies all the charges brought against him. If convicted, he will face a jail term of up to 15 years.

On July 3, Kiev’s Podolsky District Court postponed the hearing of the case to July 15 following the appointment of a new team of prosecutors who needed time to study the materials of the case, including the indictment.

On July 3, the court was to consider the order in which the prosecution would study the evidence. Moreover, Vyshinsky’s defense team was expected to file a request to change the preventive measure of remand in custody for bail. The prosecution commented that the prosecutors' team was reappointed for a number of reasons, including holiday leaves.

According to the defense attorneys, the actions of the prosecution testify that there is an intention to protract the proceedings. Vyshinsky himself told the courtroom that the recent reschedule is arising from the prosecution’s intention to keep him in custody for as long as possible. "This is a slap in the face of the Ukrainian justice!" he underlined. The court also requested that the prosecution consider the level of preparedness of the prosecutors for the hearing and subject them to disciplinary action if need be.

The indictment was delivered in full on June 10 in Kiev’s Podolsky District Court, however, Vyshinsky pleaded not guilty.

On June 25, the Ukrainian Constitutional Court delivered a ruling recognizing the unconstitutional nature of the articles of the Criminal Code stipulating that persons charged with terrorism or treason can only be held in custody as opposed to be released on bail.

On July 15, press secretary for the Ukrainian Prosecutor General Larisa Sargan said that Vyshinsky could be released on bail as soon as on Monday. "What is expected? The person in question is [expected] to be officially released on the basis of a court ruling," Sargan wrote on Facebook on Monday.

Vyshinsky's arrest expires on July 22. Judges need to make a decision on the journalist’s custody, otherwise he will be freed.