Moscow  - Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky applied for parole on Wednesday, gambling on a reprieve under Russia's new President Dmitry Medvedev, his lawyer told journalists in Moscow.

"It took all our strength to convince Mikhail Borisovich (Khodorkovsky) to take this step," Yuri Schmidt who heads his defence was quoted by news agency Interfax as saying.

"Today, we handed a request for parole to the Chita regional court," he said, naming the city in east Siberia where Khodorkhovsky is serving the fifth year of his detention.

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