Forms of international cooperation in criminal matters which provide for accurate alternatives for international obligation to extradite or prosecute ("aut dedere aut judicare")

Introduction. Most of global and regional international treaties provide for a special type of clause – the obligation to extradite or prosecute (lat. aut dedere aut judicare). International obligation gives an alternative for a state to extradite a person who committed an offence or to surrender such a person to their competent authorities to prosecute. Nevertheless, there are some legal grounds that mitigate the fulfillment of the obligation wholly or in its part. To minimize the risk of impunity, states resort to flexible mechanisms that provide an alternative to the international obligation to extradite or prosecute. Theoretical analysis. There are forms of international cooperation in criminal matters that provide for alternatives to international obligation to extradite or prosecute: transfer of criminal proceedings, transfer of convicted persons, recognition and enforcement of decisions of foreign judicial authorities, criminal proceedings “in absentia” and transfer of proceedings to international criminal justice authorities. Еmpirical analysis. Each form of international cooperation in criminal matters as an alternative to the obligation to extradite or prosecute is critically analyzed in the article. Practice of the regional association (EU), provisions of global and regional international treaties, and judicial practice serve as the ground for scientific research. Special attention is paid to the legal nature and scope of the relevant areas of cooperation within the framework of the issue in question. Results. The comparative analysis reflects the distinctive features and disadvantages of the implementation mechanism. The presented forms of international cooperation have a flexible mechanism of action in relation to the international obligation, they have dispositive legal nature and they are not strictly limited in terms of types of crimes. Futhermore, the existing alternative mechanisms contribute to compliance with the principle of inevitability of punishment, the principle of “ne bis in idem” and other procedural guarantees.