MOSCOW, January 27 (RAPSI) – Russia will seek the early release of Russian national Ravil Mingazov from the notorious US Guantanamo prison, Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian Foreign Ministry's (MFA) Special Representative for Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, told journalists on Monday.

Mingazov was arrested in Pakistan in 2002, but no charges have been filed against him to date. Dolgov told the press earlier that the US promised to clarify Mingazov's case status as soon as possible.

Since it was established in 2002, the Guantanamo Bay detention camp has been the target of criticism by human rights activists and many international government officials, who have condemned its controversial interrogation methods and the dubious legality of holding prisoners indefinitely without charging them with crimes.

The US has defended the prison as a necessary measure for dangerous prisoners who pose a serious threat to American and international security. As of December 2013, 158 prisoners remain in Guantanamo Bay, the US Defense Department said.