Putin’s threat to Ukrainian POWs a clear breach of rules of war, says human rights expert

Vladimir Putin’s threat to treat Ukrainian prisoners of war captured in Kursk as “terrorists” represents a clear breach of the “laws of war”, a human rights activist has warned.

And Tanya Lokshina has also pointed to ’s strategy of portraying captured civilians as “exchange fodder” – describing the practice as “simply not acceptable”.

captured large swathes of land in Kursk in the autumn, but speaking during a visit to the Russian region on Thursday, during which he donned military fatigues, Putin claimed Russian forces are now in control of the key city of Sudzha.

“People who are in the Kursk region, who commit crimes against civilians here, who oppose our armed forces, law enforcement agencies and special services, are the people we should certainly treat as terrorists.

ratified the Geneva Conventions in 1954 and subsequently adopted Protocol I in 1989, which expands protections to victims of international armed conflicts. However, in October 2019, President Putin signed an executive order revoking ‘s recognition of Article 90(2) of Protocol I, which pertains to the International Fact-Finding Commission’s competence.

Despite this revocation, remains a party to the Geneva Conventions and is legally bound to uphold their provisions. Treating POWs as terrorists to circumvent these obligations would undermine the conventions’ core principles.

She explained: “The laws of war are crystal clear on this issue.

“POWs may not be tried for the mere act of being combatants. Although they may be prosecuted for the same offences for which the forces of the detaining power could be tried, including war crimes and crimes against humanity (Article 82 GC III).”

The Geneva Conventions require parties to an international conflict “to investigate war crimes allegedly committed by their nationals or armed forces, or on their territory, and, if appropriate, prosecute the suspects”, Ms Lokshina pointed out.

They are also compelled to investigate other war crimes over which they have jurisdiction and, if appropriate, prosecute the suspects, she emphasised.

Ms Lokshina continued: “President Putin’s labelling all the Ukrainian combatants captured in the Kursk region as ‘terrorists’ simply doesn’t apply.

“POWs are entitled to a fair trial in accordance with international standards: they have the right to be tried before the same courts and facing the same procedures that the detaining power’s military personnel would face, offering ‘the essential guarantees of independence and impartiality’.

“POWs are entitled to competent counsel to represent them at the trial and be afforded the opportunity to present an effective defence. POWs are also entitled to appeal their conviction and sentence.”

Prosecutions must not be arbitrary, she stressed, and should be based, including at sentencing, on the laws that are in force at the time of the alleged crime and are equally applicable to POWs and forces of the detaining power.

Ms Lokshina said: ‘ has been long portraying captured Ukrainian civilians as POWs to use them as exchange fodder. This is simply not acceptable. All of the detained civilians must be released immediately and unconditionally.

“As concerns captured POWs, some of them have been tried and sentenced in without due process – apparently, in order to raise their “price” with a view of exchange.

“One of them was my friend and colleague, Maxim Butkevich, wrongfully accused of having deliberately killed Russian civilians.”

A prominent rights defender and journalist, in March 2022, Mr Butkevich wrote that he “put on hold [his] human rights and humanitarian work” and joined the Ukrainian military”. For the first two months in captivity in summer 2022, his whereabouts were unknown.

Ms Lokshina added: “When his ‘confession’ was published by Russian propagandists, it was clear that the confession had been forced. His example is one of the many. Max was released on exchange a few months ago.”

Former British Army officer Lieutenant Colonel Stuart Crawford also believed Putin would be breaching international law if he followed through with his threat.

He told Express.co.uk: “Uniformed Ukrainian troops in formed units and subject to military discipline would not normally be viewed as terrorists.

“Any crimes committed against civilians would be illegal and the perpetrators should be brought to justice as soon as possible.”