ST. PETERSBURG, June 7 - RAPSI. On Thursday, the Constitutional Court ruled that issues regarding the limited rights of citizens with work access to state secrets and who are familiar with confidential data cannot be treated using a formal approach.

The court is examining the constitutionality of the law on leaving and entering Russia, the law on state secrets, as well as a number of provisions of the Civil Procedural Code.

An appeal filed by Alexander Ilchenko, who served at the Main Operations Directorate of the General Staff for four years, instigated the case. During his service, Ilchenko had access to data which were considered a state secret.

In this regard, the Federal Migration Service refused to grant him a foreign passport. Ilchenko disputed the service's response in court, though his claims were not upheld.

The norms in question set limits with respect to travelling abroad on people who have had access to state secrets. The plaintiff believes that these regulations violate a person's right to leave the country, as well as to refer to international bodies for the protection of freedom and human rights.

The Constitutional Court did not grant the plaintiff the right for the court to reconsider his case, but did emphasize the possibility of defending his rights via other means, in particular, by filing an appeal against the authorized authorities' refusal in the inter-agency commission or court.