War in Ukraine: Russian soldier's first war crime trial opens in kyiv
Sergeant Vadim Chichimarine, 21, will be tried in kyiv.
AP - Efrem Lukatsky
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
In Ukraine, the first trial for war crimes opens this Wednesday, May 18.
In the dock, a young Russian soldier tried for having killed a Ukrainian civilian.
Vadim Chichimarine, 21, was captured by the Ukrainian army and allegedly confessed.
Advertisement
Read more
With our special correspondents in Kiev
,
Murielle Paradon
and
Sami Boukhelifa
The trial, which should soon be followed by several others, will be a test for the Ukrainian judicial system, at a time when international institutions are also carrying out their own investigations into the abuses committed by Russian troops in this country.
Vadim Chichimarine, 21, will appear at 11 a.m. GMT (2 p.m. local time) in the Solomiansky District Court in Kyiv.
Charged with war crimes and premeditated murder, the soldier, originally from Irkutsk in Siberia, faces life imprisonment.
►Also read: War crimes in Ukraine: what can international humanitarian law still do?
Deployed in the Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine, Vadim Chichimarine and his unit found themselves under fire from Ukrainian forces.
With four other soldiers, they manage to flee and go to a village.
They get their hands on a car.
Their objective: to quickly leave the area.
A 62-year-old man attends the scene.
An embarrassing witness killed instantly by the young Russian fighter.
Did he do it on his own initiative?
Did he receive the order?
This is what the Ukrainian justice must determine.
Arrest in May
In early May, the Ukrainian authorities announced his arrest without giving details, while publishing a video in which Vadim Chichimarine said he had come to fight in Ukraine to "
financially support his mother
".
Regarding the charges against him, he explained: “
I received the order to shoot, I shot him once.
He fell and we continued on our way
.
According to his lawyer, Vadim Chichimarine is fully aware of the charges against him.
He faces life imprisonment.
Through this trial, the first for war crimes since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, kyiv intends to send a strong message.
No one will escape justice.
The case is difficult, according to his lawyer.
“
We have never had such a charge in Ukraine, we have no precedents, no verdict
”, he underlined.
"
But we will get there
," added Mr. Ovsiannikov, assuring that he had found "
no violation of the rights
" of the accused by the authorities.
The trial takes place while the war is still not over.
According to the Ukrainian prosecutor's office, 11,000 investigations are underway.
40 suspects were arrested.
© RFI
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_EN
Ukraine
Russia