Russia reportedly is using Ukrainian POWs to fight in their homeland on Moscow’s side

By EMMA BURROWS
Associated Press

A Russian news agency is reporting that the country is preparing to send a battalion of Ukrainian prisoners of war to the front lines in their homeland to fight on Moscow’s side in the war. RIA Novosti reports the POWs swore allegiance to Russia when they joined the battalion, which entered service last month. The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the authenticity of the report or if the POWs were coerced. Both Ukrainian officials and the Russian Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the AP. Experts say any such formation would be an apparent violation of the Geneva Convention relating to the treatment of POWs.