Russia said a battalion of Ukrainian prisoners of war, or POWs, would soon be sent to the front lines to fight against their own country, state media reported.

State media said troops had taken an oath of allegiance, but the move could still be a violation of international laws concerning warfare. It also raises questions about the need to use POWs, in particular about the state and quality of Russia’s forces as they suffer a high number of casualties on the battlefield.

On November 7, the Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti said Ukrainian POWs in the “Bogdan Khmelnitsky” battalion swore an oath of allegiance to Russia and would soon deploy into battle. The outlet had said in late October that Russian authorities were planning to send the group — described as a battalion including about 70 prisoners from various penal colonies — to the front lines and that they were conducting relevant training in preparation.

  • Maalus@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    My grandpa was forcibly recruited in Poland and defected later to fight against nazis. The funny shit though is - my grandma was German. So dad applied for German citizenship for the entire family. We all got it, except for him (the person who had the most emotional connection to the country). Reason being? His dad betrayed the German state.

    My dad got denied a citizenship cause his dad betrayed Hitler lol