Ukraine War: Foreign Minister Liz Truss calls British death sentence a ‘serious violation of the Geneva Convention’ | Political news

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has said that the death sentence for two Britons in Ukraine is a “serious violation of the Geneva Conventions”.

Ms. Truss said she spoke with her Ukrainian counterpart to “discuss efforts to secure the release of prisoners of war held by Russian proxies”.

“The UK continues to support Ukraine against Putin’s barbaric invasion,” she wrote on Twitter.

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Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, have accused of being a mercenary after they were arrested in Mariupol in April during the intense battle for control of the port city and then appeared in court in the breakaway Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR).

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is said to be “appalled” by the sentences handed down to them and has ordered ministers to do “everything in their power” to secure their release.

A No 10 spokesman said: “The Prime Minister has been appalled by the sentencing of these men. He has been following the case closely and has asked ministers to do everything in their power to try Try to reunite them with their families as soon as possible.

“We completely condemn the false sentencing of these men to death. There is no justification for violating the protection they are entitled to.”

Asked if the British government was talking to Russia to secure their release, the spokesman said “we don’t have regular interaction with the Russians”.

They said the “priority” was to work with the Ukrainian government “to try and secure their release as quickly as possible”.

“They are protected under the Geneva Convention as members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which is why we want to continue to work closely with them to try to free them as quickly as possible. “

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov declined to comment on the cases, saying they fall under the jurisdiction of the Donetsk People’s Republic.

“At the moment they are guided by the laws of the Donetsk People’s Republic,” Lavrov told a news conference.

“Because these crimes were committed on the territory of the Donetsk People’s Republic, all that remains is speculation.

“I will not comment on the judiciary of the Donetsk People’s Republic.”

Earlier on Friday, government minister Robin Walker said the government would use “all diplomatic channels” to raise the case of the two Britons.

He told Sky News: “As the foreign minister has made clear, we will provide all possible assistance to them and their families.

“We have been absolutely clear that these people should be treated as prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention, there is no basis for putting them on trial.

“This is an illegal court in a sham government that held this trial and we obviously don’t recognize it as having any authority, but we will continue to use all channels. diplomacy to make the case that these are prisoners of war that should be treated accordingly.”

He added: “We completely condemn the approach that has been taken here and we will use every method at our disposal to address this issue.”

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