Russia to let prisoners of war fight for itself - Kiev disagrees
Around 70 Ukrainian prisoners of war are said to have switched sides and are now working for Russia at the front. This is reported by Russian state media. However, Russia would also be committing another war crime with this action.
Russia has sent a group of Ukrainian prisoners of war to the front line in Ukraine to fight on the Russian side. According to Russian state media, Ukrainian soldiers in a separate battalion called "Bohdan Khmelnytskyi" are to be subordinate to the Interior Ministry of the Donetsk People's Republic. In the meantime, they are said to have taken part in their first battle against Ukrainian forces near Urozhaine.
According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), Russia would be committing another war crime with this action. The Geneva Conventions prohibit the use of prisoners of war in military activities on the side that captured them. Accordingly, no prisoner of war may be sent to or detained in areas where he may be exposed to fire from the combat zone and may not be used for work that is unhealthy or dangerous.
Ukrainian intelligence said it was just a Kremlin claim that a Russian battalion of Ukrainian POWs was now deployed on the frontline. Spokesman Andriy Yusov told the "Kyiv Post" that it was another disinformation campaign.
Commander a Russian after all?
The first reports about the battalion were published months ago. RIA Novosti reported that around 70 prisoners of war had allegedly sworn an oath of allegiance to Russia and were now fighting on the Russian side. The commander is said to be a former Ukrainian tank commander. The advisor to the mayor of the occupied city of Mariupol, however, claims that the commander is in fact Russian. The information cannot be independently verified.
The Russian army invaded Ukraine more than 22 months ago. War crimes such as the mistreatment and killing of Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russian soldiers attracted international attention on several occasions. Cases of mistreated Russian prisoners of war by Ukrainian soldiers have also been documented by the United Nations, among others.
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The Russian army's alleged use of Ukrainian prisoners of war to fight on its side, as reported by Russian state media, could be considered another war crime, as per the Geneva Conventions. The Geneva Conventions prohibit the use of prisoners of war in military activities on the side that captured them.
The Ukrainian prisoners of war, reportedly switched to fighting for Russia, have been involved in battles near Urozhaine, according to Russian state media. This action, if true, would violate international humanitarian law, which prohibits the use of prisoners of war in direct combat.
Source: www.ntv.de
