Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, were on trial in a court in the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) in what observers denounced as a disgusting spectacular Soviet-era trial. They were captured in April while fighting for Ukrainian forces against Russian invaders in Mariupol. The British and Moroccan national Brahim Saadoun – who allegedly was a student studying in Kyiv before his arrest in April – have been accused by Russia and Kremlin-backed Donetsk separatists of being “mercenaries” and of being “terrorists”. Speaking behind bars, Mr Aslin said: “I was hoping that the sentence would be much fairer given the circumstances under which I assisted the investigation and also because I surrendered to the Donetsk People’s Republic. “I wish it were different, but God will be the one to judge me when the time comes.” Both Britons had fought for the Ukrainian army for years before the Russian invasion and were to be protected as active-duty soldiers by the Geneva Conventions for prisoners of war. The three are facing an executive order and have one month to appeal the decision, Russia’s state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported. All three said they would appeal the decision, according to the Russian news agency Tass. One theory is that their imprisonment could be a bargaining chip by the GDR or Moscow in order to extract concessions from London, which has been one of the toughest critics of the invasion of Ukraine. Their sentences were met with outrage by the UK government, with Foreign Secretary Liz Trass denouncing the trial as a “fraud”. The video released by the RIA shows Mr. Ashlin, Piner and Mr. Sandun in a courtroom cage with white bars. Mr Piner, of Watford, and Mr Sandun had pleaded not guilty to felony criminal mischief, according to the news agency. The video showed Mr. Aslin, from Newark, pleading guilty to a lesser charge of weapons and explosives. The defendants are “the first foreign mercenaries convicted in the Donetsk People’s Republic,” the Donetsk news agency said. Less than 24 hours before the verdict was handed down, Pinner and Saadoun had pleaded guilty to acts aimed at violently seizing power, according to a video released by the court to the RIA Novosti news agency. Aslin appeared to have pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of weapons and explosives. Judge Alexander Nikulin said the verdict “was guided not only by the rules and regulations laid down, but also by the most important, unshakable principle of justice”. The DPR is one of two Russian-backed separatist entities in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine that Russia says it is fighting to liberate from Ukrainian forces. Ms Truss said: “I strongly condemn the sentencing of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner by Russian proxies in eastern Ukraine. “They are prisoners of war. This is a sham crisis without any legitimacy at all. “My thoughts are with the families. “We continue to do everything we can to support them.” Robert Jenrik, Mr Ashlin’s MP in Newark, called on the Foreign Office to call on the Russian ambassador “to take account of this flagrant violation of the Geneva Convention”. He added: “This disgusting Soviet-style trial is the latest reminder of the deterioration of the Putin regime. “Russia needs to be clear, it can not behave like that to British citizens and get away with it.” The Foreign Office condemned what he called the exploitation of prisoners of war for political purposes. A spokesman said: “Fighters are entitled to immunity and should not be prosecuted for engaging in hostilities.” No comment was immediately available from the Moroccan Foreign Ministry on Mr Saadoun’s case. The trial took place in the DPR, one of the two Moscow-backed separatist entities in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. Three days before the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, Vladimir Putin recognized the two entities in Donbass as independent states from Ukraine – and said the conflict was to “liberate” the region.
