The International Criminal Court has also accused Russia of deporting Ukrainian children.
(Photo: IMAGO/NurPhoto)
Kyiv More than 14 months after Russia’s war of aggression began, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for the return of all kidnapped children and for punishment for the perpetrators. “The deportation of Ukrainian children is one of the completely premeditated elements of Russia’s attempt to erase the identity of our people and erase the essence of Ukrainians,” Zelensky said in his evening address on Thursday.
The US, meanwhile, imposed new sanctions on Russia for “wrongful arrests”. And there are new developments in the case of the mysterious Nord Stream explosions.
Zelensky: “There will be penalties for genocide”
The kidnapping of Ukrainian children must be classified as genocide, both politically and legally, demanded Zelensky. This is also important to send a signal to other potential perpetrator states: “There will be penalties for genocide.” Work is continuing on the return of the missing children.
Since the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Kiev has accused Moscow of deporting Ukrainian children. Selenski now spoke of a total of almost 20,000 abducted minors. Moscow denies this and speaks of evacuations.
In March, however, even the International Criminal Court based in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin and his child rights commissioner, Maria Lwowa-Belowa. Investigators hold both responsible for war crimes – including kidnapping children from occupied Ukrainian territories.
Over 1,000 Russians on trial for desertion and refusal
According to the media, since the start of the mobilization in Russia, the authorities have charged more than 1,000 soldiers with desertion, unauthorized removal from the force or disobeying orders. “As of last week of April, 1,064 cases were received by military courts,” reported the independent portal Mediazona.
Putin announced partial mobilization in autumn 2022. At the time, hundreds of thousands of Russians fled abroad for fear of being drafted. Speculations about a new wave of conscription are currently piling up again. The Kremlin, on the other hand, has so far denied this.
US imposes sanctions on Russia and Iran over arrests
The US imposes new sanctions on Russia and Iran for “wrongful arrests”. Among other things, the Russian secret service FSB was affected, the US government announced on Thursday. People should not be “political pawns” being arrested “under false pretenses”.
The arrest of US reporter Evan Gershkovich for alleged espionage in Russia recently caused a sensation in Russia. The Wall Street Journal correspondent was detained by the FSB in the Urals at the end of March. The authorities accuse him of espionage on behalf of the US government.
The American is in prison for alleged espionage in Russia.
(Photo: Reuters)
The US government has now emphasized that the new sanctions package had already been worked on before Gershkovich’s arrest. The American Paul Whelan has also been imprisoned in Russia for alleged espionage since 2018.
Report: Russian ship shortly before Nord Stream explosion near crime scene
According to the Danish military, a few days before the Nord Stream explosions in the Baltic Sea, a Russian special ship was in the vicinity of the detonation sites. The Danish defense command confirmed to the newspaper “Information” that a patrol ship took 26 pictures of the “SS-750” on September 22, 2022 east of the island of Bornholm.
This is how the Handelsblatt reports on the Ukraine war:
Four days later there were several explosions on the pipelines near Bornholm. The authorities assume sabotage. It is unclear who is responsible for this. Investigations are underway in Germany, Denmark and Sweden.
There is new evidence that Russia was involved in the blowing up of the Nord Stream pipelines.
(Photo: dpa)
What will be important on Friday
Russia’s Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu wants to meet his colleagues from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in India’s capital New Delhi. The member states also include China and Iran.
More: Current news on the development of the Ukraine war can be found in our news blog