Ukraine announces first war crimes trial

Ukraine has announced a first war crimes trial against a Russian soldier. According to Ukraine, there is little hope for the soldiers in the besieged Azovstal plant.

Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office has announced the first war crimes trial against a Russian soldier. A 21-year-old Russian man has been charged with killing a civilian who witnessed the theft from the window of a stolen car, a statement said.

Together with four comrades, the soldier wanted to flee in the car after an attack on his convoy in northern Ukraine. The 62-year-old civilian was cycling near his home in the village of Chupakhivka. According to Ukrainian sources, he had no weapon.

According to prosecutors, the suspect fired on the orders of another Russian army officer. The Russian soldier, who is in Ukrainian captivity, faces a life sentence for war crimes and murder. Prosecutors released a blurred photo of the suspect. She did not provide any information about the circumstances of the capture or the fate of the other four Russian soldiers.

Human Rights Watch: Russia and Ukraine use cluster munitions

According to a report by Human Rights Watch, Russian forces in Ukraine have also used internationally banned cluster munitions. As a result, hundreds of civilians lost their lives and schools, residential homes and hospitals were damaged, the human rights organization reported. The Ukrainian army also used such ammunition at least once.

There is an international treaty that has banned the use, stockpiling, trade and production of cluster munitions since 2010. Strictly speaking, however, only the 110 contracting states are bound by it. Russia and Ukraine are not among them. Nonetheless, the widespread condemnation of so many countries has made the use of these weapons internationally outlawed.

Cluster munitions can be dropped by ground missiles or from aircraft. These are bombs, some of which contain hundreds of smaller bombs, and explode in mid-air. The ammunition spreads indiscriminately over a large area. Ammunition that fails to detonate initially can lie on the ground for years and is as dangerous as unexploded landmines.

At least nine people died from the use of cluster munitions

Human Rights Watch has documented Russian use of such munitions in several cities, including Kharkiv and Mykolayiv, the organization said. According to local media reports, nine people who were queuing in front of an ATM were killed by cluster munitions in Mykolaiv on March 13. How many missions there were in total is difficult to say, but the organization assumes hundreds.

Ukraine reportedly used such munitions in a village near Kharkiv that was under Russian control. According to Ukrainian information, by May 9 almost 100,000 land mines and pieces of cluster munitions had been recovered and rendered harmless.

UN Human Rights Council meets

The UN Human Rights Council is convening in Geneva today for a special session on Russia’s war of aggression. According to the UN, war crimes and other serious violations of human rights are the focus of the one-day deliberations. More than 50 countries had called for the meeting, at the end of which there should be a resolution.

UN investigators are gathering evidence of war crimes in Ukraine, such as targeting civilians or ill-treating prisoners of war.

Zelenskyj sees progress in international guarantees

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sees significant progress in efforts to secure international security guarantees for his country. “We are negotiating with the world’s leading nations to give Ukraine confidence in security for decades to come,” said Zelenskyy in his daily video address in the evening.

Among other things, this topic was discussed at the G7 meeting on May 8, in which Ukraine took part for the first time. “This is the first time in the history of our state that such guarantees can be recorded,” said Zelenskyy. And not in any memoranda or unclear formulations, “but concrete guarantees”.

These are also “not only legally valid, but also formulated in such a way that it is clear: What exactly, who specifically and how specifically (Ukraine) is guaranteed”. One of Moscow’s demands to end the hostilities is a clear commitment by Kiev to political neutrality, for which the country is seeking strong international security guarantees.

Little hope for soldiers in the besieged Azovstal plant

The Ukrainian military leadership, meanwhile, has dampened hopes of launching an offensive to free the fighters trapped in the Mariupol Steelworks. “As of today, such a deblocking operation would require a significant number of troops because Ukrainian forces are 150-200 kilometers from Mariupol,” Deputy Chief of Staff Oleksiy Hromov said. Since the Russian troops have also built powerful defense systems in the meantime, such an operation would involve many casualties.

Ukraine suggested that Russia exchange seriously injured soldiers from the steel mill for Russian prisoners of war. “We are taking our seriously injured from Azovstal along the humanitarian corridor,” Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk wrote on Telegram. In exchange, Russian prisoners would be handed over under the “standard rules of prisoner exchange”. “There is no agreement yet. Negotiations will continue,” Vereshchuk wrote.

1000 soldiers remain in the Azovstal plant

The port city of Mariupol in south-eastern Ukraine has been under siege by Russian troops for more than two months. The last Ukrainian fighters, along with marines and units from the nationalist Azov regiment, have entrenched themselves in the steelworks there. They are demanding that the leadership in Kyiv and the international community work to save them – either through diplomatic or military means.

Most recently, around 500 civilians who were also in the steelworks were rescued via escape routes. However, Russia is refusing a free withdrawal of the fighters. They should lay down their arms and go into captivity. According to Wereshchuk, around 1,000 defenders are still in the factory, half of them are injured. According to Russian information, 2,500 Ukrainian fighters and foreign mercenaries are said to be in the steelworks.

Selenskyj is on the phone with Scholz

In a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz found out about the current situation and the negotiation process between Ukraine and Russia to end the war. Scholz emphasized that Russia remains called upon to end hostilities in Ukraine immediately, to withdraw troops from Ukraine and thus restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said after the talks.

The Federal Chancellor and the Ukrainian President also exchanged views on very specific, practical options for further support for Ukraine and agreed to remain in close contact.

Defense support, cooperation in the energy sector and tightening sanctions against Russia were discussed, Zelenskyj wrote on Twitter. “We appreciate the high level of dialogue with Germany and the support in our struggle,” said Zelenskyy.