Zelensky promises Ukraine will handle Russian deserters civilly

• According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian soldiers who surrender to Ukraine will be handled “civilized.”
• It follows the passage of a bill by Vladimir Putin that doubles the penalty for Russian soldiers who desert or defy instructions.
• In his native language of Russian, Mr. Zelensky urged Russians to surrender to Ukraine rather than run the chance of facing a war crimes trial after the fight.

According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian soldiers who surrender to Ukraine will be handled “civilized.”

Mr. Zelensky urged Russians to flee the front or surrender in his nightly address.

It follows the passage of a bill by Vladimir Putin that doubles the penalty for Russian soldiers who desert or defy instructions.

New demonstrations have also started in response to Russia’s partial mobilization of 300,000 additional troops.

In contrast to the more than 1,000 people who were imprisoned earlier in the week, 700 people were arrested on Saturday, according to the Russian human rights organization OVD-Info. Russian law forbids unapproved demonstrations.

In his native language of Russian, Mr. Zelensky urged Russians to surrender to Ukraine rather than run the chance of facing a war crimes trial after the fight.

According to him, Ukraine would treat deserters in accordance with international norms and won’t send anyone back to Russia if they’re worried about the consequences.

He said, “It is preferable to submit to Ukrainian captivity than to perish at the hands of our weapons.

On Saturday, President Putin signed a bill into law that increases the penalty for Russians who flee, refuse to fight, defy instructions, or surrender to 10 years in prison.

The actions of the Russian president are generally interpreted as an effort to retake the initiative following defeats that his soldiers experienced on the battlefield.

In Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia, four regions of Ukraine, so-called referendums on joining Russia are still taking place.

The votes have been denounced by Ukraine and the West as being undemocratic, and there have been several accusations of armed Russian soldiers intimidating residents into casting their ballots.

With the votes, Russia would be able to annex the four territories.

Sergei Lavrov, Mr. Putin’s top diplomat, declared that any region that choose to join Russia will be fully protected by it and subject to all of its laws and tenets.

Even if annexation would not be accepted internationally, it might prompt Russia to accuse the West of arming Ukraine with Western weapons, escalating the conflict.

The majority of Russians have been denied entry into Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania because they claim they are not ready to automatically provide asylum to people running from the draught.

The Baltic News Service cited Estonian Interior Minister Lauri Laanemets as saying that the invasion of Ukraine was “collectively Russian citizens’ responsibility” and that denying access to Russians would hopefully “raise anger” in Russia.

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