From the BBC:
“Russia ordered to release
Ukraine sailors”
An international tribunal has
ordered Russia to "immediately" release 24 Ukrainian sailors and
three naval ships it seized off Crimea in November. Moscow says the sailors
violated its maritime border near the peninsula which it seized from Ukraine in
2014. But the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea sided with Ukraine
in the dispute, which has stoked tensions between the nations. Russia, however,
refuses to recognise the jurisdiction of the body. It boycotted the hearings
and analysts say the chances of it abiding by the Germany-based tribunal's
provisional ruling appear minimal. The Ukrainian vessels had tried to pass
through the Kerch Strait, the only access to Ukrainian ports on the Sea of
Azov. But Russia has controlled the Strait since annexing Crimea, and its
coastguard boats fired on the vessels before boarding them. Russia has held the
sailors in Moscow ever since. But, in a ruling, the tribunal's Judge Jin-Hyuan
Paik said: "The Russian Federation must proceed immediately to release the
Ukrainian soldiers and allow them to return to the Ukraine." However,
while the tribunal said both sides should refrain from any action which would
aggravate the dispute, it did not uphold Ukraine's request for Russia to
suspend the trial of its servicemen. The
sailors face up to six years in jail if found guilty. The ruling is being seen
as a victory in Ukraine, delivering most of what Kiev sought. Ukraine's new
president, Volodymyr Zelensky, called on Russia to comply with the tribunal's
order, writing on Facebook that that by so doing, there "could be the
first signal from the Russian leadership about real readiness to end the
conflict with Ukraine". Mr Zelensky said during his swearing-in on Monday
that ending the conflict with Russian-backed rebels in the east will be his top
priority as president. Fighting in the region has claimed about 13,000 lives
since 2014.
^ Even though Russia doesn’t recognize this
verdict there should be some penalty placed on them by the International
Community for taking the Ukrainian sailors. ^
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