On 100th day of Sentsov hunger strike
Supporters of jailed Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov on August 21 marked the 100th day of his hunger strike with renewed demands for Russia to release him. A vocal opponent of Russia’s 2014 takeover of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula, Mr. Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted by a Russian court in 2015 of conspiring to commit terrorist acts. The 42-year-old has been on a hunger strike at a penal colony in Labytnangi in Russia’s northern region of Yamalo-Nenets since May. He is demanding that Russia release 64 Ukrainian citizens that he considers political prisoners. Russian authorities are reluctant to free Mr. Sentsov, despite reports of a dramatic decline in his health and pressure from Western governments and human rights groups, which have backed the film director’s contention that the charges against him were politically motivated. On August 21, several dozen people demonstrated in front of the Russian Embassy in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in support of the filmmaker. Some of the participants carried signs reading, “Free Sentsov” and “Stop [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.” Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Maryana Betsa tweeted that Kyiv demands Mr. Sentsov’s immediate release. “It is the 100th day of O. Sentsov’s hunger strike. It is a scary number. Human life is the highest value. We demand that the Russian Federation immediately release Oleh,” Ms. Betsa wrote. She also called on Ukraine’s “partners and international organizations to increase pressure” on Moscow to release Mr. Sentsov and other Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia. In Russia, 10 protesters were arrested by Russian police in an unsanctioned demonstration near Moscow’s Griboyedov monument, according to OVD-Info, a human rights organization that monitors detentions. The participants in the rally, who numbered more than 20, were holding Mr. Sentsov’s portraits and posters calling for his release. Elsewhere in Russia, activists from the Open Russia civic movement unfolded a big banner in the capital of the Tatarstan region, Kazan, saying, “Freedom for Sentsov, 100 days.” The banner was placed under the walls of the city’s ancient fortress, known as the Kazan Kremlin. In London, a group of demonstrators gathered outside Russia’s Embassy, shouting, “Free Sentsov.” The PEN International association of writers, which organized the rally, planned to deliver “messages of support from all over the world” to the Embassy and urge the Russian authorities to ensure that Mr. Sentsov is allowed to receive them in the penal colony where he is being incarcerated. And in the Czech Republic, filmmakers said they were launching a rotating hunger strike in solidarity with their Ukrainian colleague, with seven of them participating in the first rotation. “We’ll be on hunger strike for five days, from this morning until August 25,” Vit Janecek, a member of the Czech Association of Directors, Writers and Playwrights, told the AFP news agency. “We’re launching this initiative in the hope that other people will join during the next five-day cycles until the Sentsov case is resolved,” he added. And the French newspaper Le Monde carried a plea. (RFE/RL, with reporting by AFP, AP, RFE/RL’s Tatar-Bashkir Service, and RFE/RL’s Russian Service)
RFE/RL questions ‘confession’ of blogger
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) says an alleged “confession” of spying by Ukrainian blogger and RFE/RL contributor Stanislav Aseyev that aired on Russian TV was “highly questionable” and demanded his immediate release from detention by Moscow-backed separatists. “We question the circumstances of this purported confession,” RFE/RL spokeswoman Joanna Levison said on August 17. “We have no idea when it was made, or under what conditions or duress. We continue to demand that Stanislav Aseyev be released from detention immediately,” she added. The report and confession aired on Russian state TV channel Rossiya 24 on August 17. Mr. Aseyev, who has reported for various Ukrainian media outlets, also contributes to RFE/RL’s Ukraine Service and writes under the name Stanislav Vasin. He disappeared in Donetsk on June 2, 2017, and weeks later, Amnesty International said it had received information from sources in the Donetsk region that Mr. Aseyev was being held by the self-styled security organs of the Russia-backed separatists. A friend of Mr. Aseyev’s and a former lawmaker, Yehor Firsov, said in July that the prisoner had declared a hunger strike and was being “kept in a damp room, sick, but does not receive the necessary medications” while under separatist custody. Mr. Firsov said the separatists had accused Mr. Aseyev of spying for the Ukrainian government and threatened him with up to 14 years in prison. RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service has been unable to contact him since his disappearance and his current condition is unknown. A bipartisan U.S. congressional caucus on August 8 called for Mr. Aseyev’s immediate release, describing him as “one of the few independent journalists to remain in the region under separatist control to provide objective reporting.” The statement also noted that Mr. Aseyev had reportedly gone on hunger strike and that his “situation is becoming dire.” U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R- Fla.) on July 20 also called for Mr. Aseyev’s release. Human rights groups have expressed concerns over Mr. Aseyev’s whereabouts and said the separatists must release him immediately if they are holding him. (RFE/RL)
Groysman aide on trial for spying
An aide to Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman who is charged with spying for Russia went on trial on August 22. Stanislav Yezhov has pleaded not guilty to the charges, saying investigators have no evidence that would prove he served as a Russian spy. At the trial, Prosecutor Oleksiy Vdovychenko presented materials suggesting that Mr. Yezhov had electronically sent audio recordings to an unknown person and written texts about talks between top Ukrainian officials and representatives of foreign governments. Holosiyiv District Court Judge Olena Pervushyna adjourned the trial until September 3, ordering the prosecutors to “more thoroughly” prepare for the process. Ms. Pervushyna said Mr. Vdovychenko presented the evidence in the case in an “illogical sequence.” Mr. Yezhov, who accompanied Mr. Groysman on his international trips and often served as an interpreter, was arrested in December 2017 and charged with “acting in the interests of security services of the aggressor country.” If convicted, Mr. Yezhov faces up to 15 years in prison. Mr. Yezhov previously has worked at the Ukrainian Embassy in the United States as well as the Ukrainian president’s office. (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)
Dzhemilev: Erdogan will talk to Putin
Ukrainian lawmaker Mustafa Dzhemilev, a veteran leader of the Crimean Tatars, says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has promised “to talk” to Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the situation for Ukrainian nationals jailed in Russia. Mr. Dzhemilev told RFE/RL on August 21 that Mr. Erdogan had asked him to present the list of Ukrainian citizens serving prison terms in Russia so that he could discuss their possible release with the Russian leader. Mr. According to Dzhemilev, he talked to Mr. Erdogan on July 12 at an event in Turkey, and the Turkish Foreign Affairs Ministry requested the list of the Ukrainians jailed in Russia “several days ago.” In October 2017, two Crimean Tatar leaders, Akhtem Chiygoz and Ilmi Umerov, who were jailed in Russia over their rejection of Moscow’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, were suddenly brought to Turkey and released. Although there was no official explanation for their sudden release, unofficial reports said then that the two Crimean Tatar leaders’ release was a result of an agreement reached by Presidents Erdogan and Putin. Moscow’s takeover of Crimea in March 2014 was vocally opposed by a majority of the peninsula’s indigenous Turkic-speaking and mainly Muslim Crimean Tatars. (RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service)
SMM spots military hardware in Donbas
Representatives of the Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) have recorded the presence of 18 towed howitzers and nearly 775 ammunition crates in non-government controlled areas in Donbas, the mission has said in a report. The SMM’s official report for August 12 says that beyond withdrawal lines but outside designated storage sites in a non-government-controlled area, on August 10, an SMM mini-UAV spotted 18 towed howitzers (eight 2A36 Giatsint-B, 152mm and ten 2A65 Msta-B, 152mm) in a compound north of Khrustalny. OSCE observers say that at another compound, the same SMM mini-UAV spotted an artillery reconnaissance vehicle (PRP-4 Nard) and 775 ammunition crates (some of which were assessed as new), as well as 118 crates of MLRS (BM-21) rockets. The OSCE SMM said that in violation of withdrawal lines in non-government-controlled areas, an SMM long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) again spotted six multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) (BM-21 Grad, 122mm) in a compound north of Khrustalny on August 10, which were not seen earlier during the day when an SMM mini-UAV flew over the same area. On August 11, the SMM saw four MLRS (BM-21) near Novoamvrosiyivske. (Interfax-Ukraine)
Trump ‘would consider’ lifting sanctions
U.S. President Donald Trump has said in an interview with Reuters that he isn’t considering lifting sanctions on Russia, but he would consider doing so if Russia gave him something he wants in Ukraine or Syria. “I’m not considering it at all. No. I would consider it if they do something that would be good for us. But I wouldn’t consider it without that,” Mr. Trump said in the interview released late on August 20. He then suggested areas where he could foresee making a deal with Russia over sanctions. “We have a lot of things we can do good for each other. You have Syria. You have Ukraine. You have many other things,” he said. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on August 21 the Kremlin welcomed Mr. Trump’s comments indicating readiness to cooperate with Moscow, but that it would “welcome even more some kind of concrete actions.” Mr. Trump told Reuters that Mr. Putin did not ask him to lift U.S. sanctions during their summit in Helsinki last month. But he said the two in a private meeting that lasted nearly two hours did talk about Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and incursion into eastern Ukraine, as well as the Nord Stream 2 natural-gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. “I mentioned Crimea, sure. I always mention Crimea whenever I mention Ukraine. Putin and I had a very good discussion. It was a very – I think it was a very good discussion for both parties. I mentioned the gas pipeline going to Germany,” Mr. Trump said. On an issue related to sanctions – Russia’s faltering economy – Mr. Trump told Reuters that Mr. Putin seemed eager for help at the summit. “I think they would like economic development. And that’s a big thing for them,” he said. “We had a very good, I guess, close to two-hour meeting. We had another good meeting with a lot of our representatives there. We talked about Israel, we talked about insecurity for Israel, we talked about Syria, we talked about Ukraine,” he said. (RFE/RL, with reporting by Reuters)
Court sentences woman for treason
A court in Ukraine has issued a suspended three-year prison sentence against a woman from Crimea charged with high treason. Russian human rights ombudswoman Tatyana Moskalkova says her Ukrainian counterpart, Lyudmyla Denisova, informed her a court in Ukraine’s southern city of Kherson accepted a guilty plea from Olena Odnovol and sentenced her on August 16. Ms. Odnovol was arrested in April when she crossed into Ukrainian-controlled territory from Crimea, which was seized and illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko said Ms. Odnovol had played an active role in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s election campaign by collecting signatures in 2017 from his supporters in “Russia-occupied Ukrainian territory.” Ukrainian authorities said earlier that Ms. Odnovol used her Ukrainian passport to enter Ukraine’s Kherson region from Crimea. (RFE/RL, based on reporting by Gordon, Ukrayinska Pravda, UNIAN, TASS and Interfax)
EU on Anti-Corruption Court legislation
Ukraine’s adoption of the legislation to establish a high anti-corruption court is a positive development in accordance with its international obligations and to the benefit of Ukrainian citizens and businesses, said Maja Kocijancic, the European Union’s spokesperson for foreign affairs and security policy, in an August 10 statement. “The establishment marks a significant step in the crucial fight against corruption in Ukraine which is a key component of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement and follows the commitments taken by Ukraine during the EU-Ukraine Summit on July 9 in Brussels.” She added, “The EU underlines the need for all anti-corruption institutions to be fully independent and carry out their tasks free from undue influence. We look forward to the court being fully operational before the end of the year as this is the intention of the authorities. What counts now, what will support the country and its people to fight against corruption will be the full implementation of this act. The European Union stands ready to support the process.” After the anti-corruption court is established, a national anti-corruption bureau and a specialized anti-corruption prosecutor will also need to be established. (UATV)
Merkel and Putin exchange views
The Kremlin says German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a “very serious and detailed” three-hour discussion during their August 18 meeting outside of Berlin, including an exchange of views on Ukraine, Syria, Iran, and a crucial pipeline project. The remarks to reporters early on August 19 by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov were the first comments after the meeting of the two leaders at Meseberg Castle north of Berlin. Few details were revealed. Officials had said the leaders would not be holding a news conference following their talks, and no other official statements were immediately released. In his comments, Mr. Peskov said Ms. Merkel and Mr. Putin had a “general exchange of opinions” over the situation in Ukraine and that the leaders expressed regret that implementation of the so-called Minsk accords had stalled. The Minsk agreements are September 2014 and February 2015 pacts aimed at resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Kyiv government forces in a war that has killed more than 10,300 people since 2014. Prior to the meeting, the German chancellor said she would discuss the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, as well as Iran and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project with Mr. Putin. Addressing reporters at Meseberg Palace outside of Berlin before their talks, Ms. Merkel said she would also raise human rights issues and bilateral relations. “I am of the opinion that controversial issues can only be addressed in dialogue and through dialogue,” she said. On the planned Nord Stream 2 pipeline to carry Russian gas under the Baltic to Germany, Ms. Merkel said that “Ukraine must continue to play a role in the transit of gas to Europe once Nord Stream 2 is in place.” She welcomed the start of discussions among the European Union, Ukraine and Russia on the issue. Mr. Putin told reporters that such a move had to make sense for Moscow from a business perspective. “I would like to stress that the main thing is that the Ukrainian transit – which is traditional for us – meets economic demands,” he said. “Nord Stream 2 is exclusively an economic project.” The United States is against the pipeline and claims it will increase Germany’s dependence on Russia for energy. Ukraine fears the pipeline will allow Russia to cut it off from the gas transit business. Germany’s eastern European neighbors, nervous of Russian encroachment, have also raised concerns about the project. But Ms. Merkel has maintained that the Nord Stream project is an economic, not political matter for Germany. She is also under pressure from German businesses to maintain ties with Russia on that and other important economic projects. (RFE/RL, with reporting by Reuters and TASS)