With the outbreak of a full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, it is not uncommon for Russian soldiers to desert, who then seek political asylum in other countries.. However, before giving such asylum to the Russian military, they need to be carefully checked for war crimes in Ukraine, said former Deputy Prosecutor General Gunduz Mammadov..

For example, Radio Liberty journalists spoke about one of these deserters.. Andrey Medvedev served for four months as part of the Wagner PMC in the Donetsk region, where he fought against the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including near Bakhmut. Subsequently, he deserted from the front.

The Russian convinces that he is ready to testify about the “war crimes” seen by his colleagues “Wagnerites”. Medvedev also claims that in the Russian Federation he could have been killed for such intentions, so he fled to Norway, where he seeks political asylum.

“There is first of all the European Convention on Human Rights, there is also the Geneva Convention on Refugees (1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees - ed.. ), regulating when citizens of other states enter this country, persecuted for various reasons. It can be religious reasons, political, national. And in this situation, it is important for the law enforcement system to do its job and it is enough to collect hard facts about the presence of signs of crimes in certain citizens,” Mamedova explained in response to the question on what basis Medvedev could be in Norway without finding out whether he committed.

According to him, the Ukrainian law enforcement system should also collect relevant data.. This is necessary in order to later ask for the extradition of such Russians.

At the same time, there is an International Convention against the Recruitment, Use, Financing and Training of Mercenaries. And if the former “Wagnerite” Medvedev falls under its articles, then in Norway, as Mammadov explained, he can expect an investigation and trial.

The former Deputy Prosecutor General noted that testimony and evidence, if Medvedev really has them, are very important for the investigation..

However, this, as Mammadova stressed, does not relieve the former "

“Before giving any status to deserters who fled to other states, they must be carefully checked for involvement in the commission of war crimes on the territory of Ukraine. Those shown in the story are no exception,” Mammadov wrote on Twitter, commenting on the above story..

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Earlier, British intelligence reported that due to low morale and unwillingness to fight, Russian troops likely began to deploy " These units threaten to shoot down their own retreating soldiers to force them to advance.. Such schemes were used by Russian troops in past conflicts..