Polish foreign minister slams Savchenko verdict
PR dla Zagranicy
Nick Hodge
23.03.2016 09:45
Poland's foreign minister has criticised a Russian court's ruling against Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko, who has been sentenced to 22 years in prison.
Former Ukrainian military pilot Nadezhda Savchenko (L) inside a glass cage during a court hearing at the Donetsk district court in Donetsk, Rostov Region, Russia, 21 March 2016. The court found Nadezhda Savchenko guilty in assistance of killing Russian TV journalists and started reading the verdict. EPA/STRINGER
“This is a kind of terrorism as opposed to humanism, because this is a case that should never have even seen the light of day,” Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski told reporters while on a visit to Minsk, Belarus.
“Speaking generally, the Russian attack on Ukraine should never have happened, nor should the kidnapping of people for this type of trial.”
“This matter was discussed some time ago among a group of European Union leaders, and we gave Ms Mogherini [the EU's foreign policy chief] – if she goes to Moscow – the mandate to take up the matter and demand the release of Miss Savchenko.”
Savchenko was found guilty of charges connected with the deaths of two Russian journalists.
She was accused of directing artillery fire in an operation in eastern Ukraine, as a result of which the journalists died.
Savchenko denied the charges, and her lawyer claimed that she had been kidnapped by pro-Russian rebels prior to the deaths of the journalists. (nh/pk)
Source: PAP