A Norwegian court has said it will not deal with a lawsuit aimed at preventing the possible extradition of American whistleblower Edward Snowden.
Snowden, 32, formerly employed by his country’s National Security Agency, took refuge in Russia in 2013 after revealing information about US domestic and overseas surveillance. He has resided in an undisclosed location in Russia ever since.
But he was considering a trip to Oslo to receive a prize from the Norwegian branch of PEN, a worldwide literary association dedicated to defending writers and free expression.
PEN said a law firm had filed a petition with Oslo City Court "in order to allow Snowden to travel to Norway without fear of extradition to the US, where he faces decades of imprisonment under the Espionage Act".
The Norwegian state attorney’s office submitted a request to the Oslo District Court asking it to reject the lawsuit, arguing that Snowden’s case is a criminal one rather than civil. This would mean that a trial was necessary to ascertain guilt or innocence and that would be possible only if an extradition request was received.
The Oslo District Court accepted that interpretation and rejected the lawsuit.
"Oslo District Court has decided that the lawsuit from Edward Snowden against the State regarding extradition should be dismissed," the court said in a statement.
The court held that Norway's extradition laws apply only to people already in the country, and that the justice ministry could not be compelled to issue a decision on whether or not to extradite someone who lives abroad.
US authorities have charged Snowden with espionage and stealing state secrets.
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