Speaking at a press conference, Lavrov declined to comment on the cases of the two Britons who were sentenced to death for fighting with Russian forces, saying they were under the jurisdiction of the DPR. Lavrov said: At the moment, the trials you mentioned are being conducted under the law of the Donetsk People’s Republic, because these crimes were committed in the territory of the DRC. I will not comment on the judiciary of the Donetsk People’s Republic. Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, were sentenced yesterday in court for taking action for a violent seizure of power, a verdict that has been described as a “false crisis” with “absolutely no legitimacy”. The GDR, where separatist forces launched a military campaign to secede from Ukraine with Moscow support in 2014, is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine. Among the UN member states, only Russia recognizes the entire Ukrainian province of Donetsk, much of which remains under Ukrainian control, as an independent GDR. Hello everyone, it’s Léonie Chao-Fong here again, taking over the live blog from Martin Belam. Do not hesitate to send me a message if you have something to point out, you can contact me on Twitter or via email. Updated at 12.29 BST British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she had spoken with her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitry Kuleba, to discuss efforts to secure the release of prisoners of war “held by Russian proxies”. He described the death sentence against Aiden Aslin and Shuan Pinner as a “gross violation of the Geneva Convention”. He spoke with Ukrainian Foreign Minister @DmytroKuleba to discuss efforts to secure the release of prisoners of war held by Russian proxies. The court ruling against them is a clear violation of the Geneva Convention. The United Kingdom continues to support Ukraine against Putin’s barbaric invasion. pic.twitter.com/DyKZAP4HA6 – Liz Truss (@trussliz) June 10, 2022 Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova described Britain’s reaction to the sentencing of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner in Russian-controlled Donetsk as “hysterical”. Writing in the Telegram, Zakharova said Britain should seek redress from the breakaway Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) – which is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine. Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declined to comment on the allegations, saying they were under the jurisdiction of the GDR. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is “shocked” by the death sentences handed down to Aiden Aslin and Sean Piner and has ordered ministers to do “everything in their power” to secure their release, the spokesman said. of the Prime Minister. A spokesman for No. 10 said: The Prime Minister was frightened by the condemnation of these men. He is closely following the case and asked the ministers to do everything in their power to try to reunite them with their families as soon as possible. We fully condemn the pretentious sentencing of these men to death. There is absolutely no excuse for this violation of the protection to which they are entitled. The United Kingdom is giving priority to talks with Ukraine over Russia on the situation, the spokesman added. Asked if Britain would negotiate with Russia to secure their release, they said: “We have no regular interaction with the Russians.” The spokesman added: Our priority is to work with the Ukrainian government to try to secure their release as soon as possible. They are protected under the Geneva Convention as members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, so we want to continue to work closely with them to try to free them as soon as possible. A senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Mykhailo Podolyak, criticized Vladimir Putin’s comments in which the Russian president tried to justify his invasion of Ukraine. Putin compared himself to 18th-century Russian Tsar Peter the Great, drawing a parallel between what he described as their twin historical quest to regain Russian territory after visiting an exhibition dedicated to the tsar yesterday. Putin’s confession of land grabs and his comparison with Peter the Great prove: there was no “conflict”, only the bloody occupation of the country with fabricated pretexts of genocide. We should not talk about “salvation που face”, but about its immediate de-imperialization. – Mikhail Podolyak (@Podolyak_M) June 10, 2022 Podolyak wrote on Twitter: Putin’s confession of land grabs and his comparison with Peter the Great prove: there was no “conflict”, only the bloody occupation of the country under fabricated pretexts of genocide. He said that there should be no talk of “saving the Russian person” but of “immediate de-imperialization”. Updated at 12.20 BST Apartment building destroyed during the Russian invasion of Ukraine in the city of Irpin near Kyiv, Ukraine. Photo: Maxym Marusenko / NurPhoto / Rex / Shutterstock Residents of the area collect unbreakable objects in an apartment building destroyed by a Russian airstrike in the city of Borodianka, in the Kiev region of Ukraine. Photo: Maxym Marusenko / NurPhoto / Rex / Shutterstock Updated at 12.21 BST Russia wants to use the two Britons and Moroccans who were sentenced to death for fighting Russian forces as “hostages” to press the West for peace talks, a senior Ukrainian official has said. Following the sentencing of Aiden Aslin, Shaun Pinner and Saaudun Brahim in the self-proclaimed republic of Donetsk, Ukraine said the decision had no power and that the men were members of the Ukrainian armed forces and subject to the protection of the Geneva Convention. Kyiv will coordinate its position on the sanctions with London, Washington and the EU, said Interior Ministry adviser Vadim Denisenko. Denishenko said: The trial of the foreigners raises the stakes in the negotiation process of the Russian Federation. They use them as hostages to put pressure on the world about the negotiation process. The Russian and Ukrainian delegations have held several rounds of long-distance talks and in person since the invasion of Russian troops on February 24, but efforts have been frozen for more than a month.

Two Britons sentenced to death “commit crimes in Donetsk”, Russia says

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said that two British nationals and a Moroccan were sentenced to death in the Donetsk Autonomous People’s Republic (DPR) for crimes committed in the territory of the self-proclaimed state. Speaking at a press conference, Lavrov declined to comment on the cases of the two Britons who were sentenced to death for fighting with Russian forces, saying they were under the jurisdiction of the DPR. Lavrov said: At the moment, the trials you mentioned are being conducted under the law of the Donetsk People’s Republic, because these crimes were committed in the territory of the DRC. I will not comment on the judiciary of the Donetsk People’s Republic. Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, were sentenced yesterday in court for taking action for a violent seizure of power, a verdict that has been described as a “false crisis” with “absolutely no legitimacy”. The GDR, where separatist forces launched a military campaign to secede from Ukraine with Moscow support in 2014, is internationally recognized as part of Ukraine. Among the UN member states, only Russia recognizes the entire Ukrainian province of Donetsk, much of which remains under Ukrainian control, as an independent GDR. Hello everyone, it’s Léonie Chao-Fong here again, taking over the live blog from Martin Belam. Do not hesitate to send me a message if you have something to point out, you can contact me on Twitter or via email. Updated at 12.29 BST

Today so far…

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss will raise the case of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner, two Britons sentenced to death by a pro-Russian court in occupied Ukraine, when she spoke to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Friday. True has already described it as a “false crisis” and said it “had absolutely no legitimacy”.

A British MP has said that the only person who can immediately resolve the situation with the two men is Russian President Vladimir Putin. Robert Genrik described the conviction as a “war crime”, “utterly outrageous” and a “gross violation of international law”. He said the two men were being used “essentially as hostages” by pro-Russian forces in the area.

The two Britons and a Moroccan national were arrested while fighting in the Ukrainian army in Mariupol and sentenced to death by pro-Russian officials after a long process described as a “disgusting demonstration trial of the Soviet era”. A court in Russian-controlled eastern Ukraine has convicted 28-year-old Aslin of Newark-on-Trent, 48-year-old Pinner of Watford and Saaudun Brahim of “terrorism”.

Ukrainian troops claim to have fought fierce street battles in Sievierodonetsk, but say their only hope is to turn the tide with more artillery to offset Russia’s enormous firepower. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said that the country “holds” the main cities of the first line in Donbas. “Sievierodonetsk, Lysychansk and other cities in the Donbas, which the occupiers now consider key targets, are holding on,” he said, adding that Ukraine had had some success in Zaporizhzhia.

Serhiy Haidai, the governor of Luhansk, Ukraine, said: “The entire Luhansk free zone has come under heavy bombardment. Fierce street fighting continues in Sievierodonetsk. We are weakening the enemy. “

Russia is looking for weak points in the Ukrainian defense near the river Siverskyi Donets in the east …