Three men fighting for Ukraine have been sentenced to death by executive order in a case that British leaders have condemned as a sham trial. Ariana Triggs, USA TODAY The leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic sees no reason to pardon two British nationals and a Moroccan man who were sentenced to death after their capture while fighting with the Ukrainian army. On Thursday, the Donetsk Supreme Court sentenced Shaun Pinner and Aiden Aslin, as well as Moroccan Saadoun Brahim, to death by firing squad for their role as mercenaries on the Ukrainian armed forces. Prosecutors said the men pleaded guilty to all charges. “First, I have to be guided by the court ruling,” said separatist leader Dennis Pushilin. “From the nature of these articles, of those crimes they committed, I see no reason, no condition to make a decision for their sake.” Piner’s family issued a statement saying they were “devastated and saddened by the outcome of the illegal demonstration trial.” Piner described him as a Ukrainian soldier, not a mercenary, and said he should be treated as a prisoner of war, not a criminal. “We sincerely hope that all parties will work together urgently to ensure the safe release or exchange of Shaun,” the statement said. “Our family, including his son and his Ukrainian wife, love him and miss him so much and our hearts go out to all the families involved in this awful situation.” US TODAY ON THE TELEGRAM: Subscribe to the Russia-Ukraine war channel to receive updates directly on your phone Latest developments ΣεChina surpassed Germany as the largest buyer of Russian energy exports. The Center for Energy and Clean Air Research said Monday that Russia received about 93 billion euros in revenue from the sale of oil, gas and coal since the February 24 invasion – 12.1 billion euros from Germany, 12.6 billion euros. billions of euros from China. RiAndriy Pokrasa, 15, and his father, Stanislav, are greeted in Ukraine for their voluntary air reconnaissance work, using their small drone in the early days of the Russian invasion, locating coordinates and quickly sending valuable information to the Ukrainian army. . Russian forces have intensified an artillery-backed attack on the city of Sivierodonetsk and pushed Ukrainian troops out of the central neighborhoods, the Ukrainian military said Monday. The city is one of only two cities in the Luhansk region of Donbass that Russia does not fully control. Regional Governor Serhiy Haidai said the Russians were aiming to encircle Sievierodonetsk, destroying bridges connecting the city center. He said mass evacuations were impossible due to the bombings and that the army was only able to evacuate a few people a day. “The Russians are making every effort to cut off Sievierodonetsk,” Haidai said. “The next two or three days will be important.” Leonid Pasehnik, leader of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Luhansk, said the Ukrainians stationed in Sievierodonetsk should be spared the trouble. “If I were them, I would already have made a decision to surrender,” he said. “We will achieve our goal in any case.” The Russians are relying on their superiority in troops and artillery to make significant progress in the Donbas industrial area of eastern Ukraine, but will likely need to replenish their forces, according to an assessment by British intelligence. “Russia will probably have to rely on new recruits or mobilized reservists to deploy these units in Ukraine,” the assessment said, posted on Twitter on Sunday before the ministry released a map of Ukraine highlighting the territories controlled by Russia in the east and south. large part, including most of Donbass, where the sides continue to wage a fierce battle for the critical city of Sievierodonetsk in Luhansk Province. British and Ukrainian officials have warned that Russia is using inaccurate weapons that could inflict heavy casualties as they try to gain ground in an area that could offer them a land route to the Crimean peninsula, which they illegally annexed in 2014. An adviser to the Ukrainian president said his country needed 1,000 155mm shells, 300 multiple missile launchers, 500 tanks, 2,000 armored vehicles and 1,000 unmanned aircraft to win the war against Russia. Mykhailo Podolyak said his country was “awaiting a decision” from NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday. Ukrainian cities have been hit by Russian missiles and mortars for months, resulting in the loss of thousands of civilians and the destruction of hundreds of homes and businesses. “I will be right. To end the war and drive Russia out of Ukraine, we need an exchange of heavy weapons,” Podolyak wrote on Twitter. The Security Service of Ukraine has arrested a spy who, according to her, leaked to the Russians the position of the Ukrainian army in the Kharkiv region. The spy, who is being held on the outskirts of Kharkiv, is a resident of the area recruited via the Internet. The government says the man, following instructions from his Russian pilot, recorded the location of Ukrainian military units and other military formations in the area. Among other information, the Russians were interested in the coordinates of Ukrainian checkpoints and military fortifications, the government said. If convicted, the man could face up to 12 years in prison. McDonald’s restaurants reopened across Moscow on Sunday, minus the US name and property, but with the same menu that attracted large crowds to 850 stores across Russia. “I’m excited to announce our new name, Vkusno & tochka,” fast food chain general manager Oleg Paroev told reporters just hours before the first store reopens on Pushkin Square in Moscow. The name translates to “Tasty and That’s It” or “Tasty, Period”. McDonald’s shut down all 850 of its restaurants in Russia on March 14, less than three weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine. Two months later, McDonald’s announced that it was withdrawing from Russia, 32 years after the opening of its first seat in Pushkin Square. McDonald’s sold the business to Russian businessman Alexander Govor. The chain kept the previous workers and the menu but changed the names. Fifteen restaurants have reopened in Moscow and about 200 will be open by the end of the month, Govor said. “This is a historic place – the flagship of McDonald’s,” Govor told reporters. “I’m sure it will be the flagship for us.” Contribution? The Associated Press
