To the Chita Region Court
From Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky

STATEMENT

1. I CONFIRM

— that I require additional time to familiarise myself with the case documentation;

— that the opportunity for such familiarisation is being provided, so far as that is possible, within the conditions of the pre-trial detention centre;

— that I am convinced that my colleagues from Yukos are innocent as charged and that the actions of the investigators in regard to them have been unlawful;

and that If there was a chance to help innocent people to avoid unlawful persecution I would take it without a second thought.

2. I OBJECT

to the assertions of the prosecution

— that I had or still have a desire to hide from the investigators and the court. This is a foolish supposition, considering my stated public position and how well-known I am;

— that I want to destroy the evidence of the case. The opposite is true. The investigators are hiding from me and from the courts since the more documents there are, the clearer becomes the absurdity of the accusation;

or that I have the intention of influencing the witnesses. The opposite is true. The investigators refuse to cross-examine certain witnesses whom they find inconvenient and exerts pressure on others by threatening them with criminal prosecution and being “forced” out of the country.

3. I DECLARE

— that there are no depositions in the case files that I find “inconvenient”, nor could there be any. The reason is simple: the accusation is absurd and therefore incapable of proof;

and that there are no lawful and rational reasons for detaining me in custody nor can there be.

Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky
11 July 2008