WASHINGTON, September 26 - RAPSI. The U.S. Department of Justice will not comment on the extradition case of convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout and Konstantin Yaroshenko, who were sentenced in the United States to lengthy prison terms.

On April 5, Bout was sentenced to 25 years in prison by the New York Federal Court for planning to sell arms to the leftist Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces.

Yaroshenko was sentenced to 20 years in prison for colluding in the smuggling of a cocaine shipment to the United States.

"By tradition, we do not and will not comment on these cases. The Department of Justice never comments on extradition cases until they are completed," a source at the department told RIA Novosti in a private conversation when asked about the progress in the extradition.

The source added that the department is reviewing the documents submitted by Russia, which may take time.

"However, I cannot and I will not make any statements on the timeframe and the procedure itself," the source said.

The Foreign Ministry's official representative Alexander Lukashevich said Moscow will seek Bout and Yaroshenko's extradition. Previously, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he was determined to have Bout and Yaroshenko returned to Russia.