See Finnish professor defend himself

[Editor’s note 28 August 2014: Timo Kivomäki was found guilty under the Danish paragraph 108, the so-called mild espionage paragraph, on 31 May 2012. Mild espionage is defined as aiding a foreign intelligence service without directly researching for them or informing for them. He was given a five month prison sentence. A resumé of the court’s decision can be found here. He served two and a half months in home arrest and four days of community service]

Finnish professor and, ex-University of Copenhagen lecturer, Timo Kivimäki was interviewed by TV2 News as he left the Glostrup courtroom yesterday Thursday.

He called the five month prison verdict »surprising« and »unfair«, since he does not believe it was Russian spies that he proffered information to.

»I don’t think these guys were spies, and I haven’t heard any evidence that they were. The court has entered the paranoid world of the intelligence community – in this world everybody is a terrorist or a spy. I don’t believe in that world.«

See the interview with Timo Kivimäki in English here.

Clearer rules for academics needed

He explains that he co-operated with Danish, Finnish, Dutch diplomats and the EU Commission in exactly the same way that he did with employees of the Russian embassy.

Danish politicians should establish clear guidelines on the co-operation with foreign powers, he said. An appeal from the University of Copenhagen’s Rector Ralf Hemmingsen to the Police Intelligence (PET) for clarity in the rules for academics co-operation with other countries, was wrong, Kivimäki believes. This is something for the lawmakers and the courts, not the intelligence service, he says:

»It is problematic that my Rector makes an appeal to the Danish intelligence service (PET) about this«.

To discuss next move with lawyer

Kivimäki does not know yet whether he will appeal.

»I will now discuss with my lawyer what the next step is going to be,« he said.

universitypost@adm.ku.dk

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