August 23, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

The United Nations has warned that Russia and affiliated groups could be planning trials for Ukrainian prisoners of war around the country's independence day on Wednesday.

"We are concerned by reports that the Russian Federation and affiliated armed groups in Donetsk are planning — possibly in the coming days — to try Ukrainian prisoners of war in what is being labelled an 'international tribunal' in Mariupol," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ravina Shamdasani on Tuesday.

Shamdasani said that willfully depriving prisoners of war a fair trial is a war crime, and international humanitarian law prohibits the establishment of courts solely to judge prisoners of war.

Some context: On August 12, Ukrainian officials said they expect Russia to start the trials in Mariupol.

"The occupiers are turning the Mariupol Philharmonic Hall, the pearl of the city, where only festive events took place, into a place of trial for our prisoners of war and civilians," said city mayor Vadym Boichenko.

A correspondent working for Zvezda, the Russian Defense Ministry's channel, reported from outside the philharmonic hall in the same week, noting that a "huge metal frame is being built next to the philharmonic. This is a future hangar, where prison wagons with Azov prisoners of war will presumably come by."

On Tuesday, Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement they had submitted a number of new urgent demands to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) regarding ensuring the right to life and the prohibition of torture in relation to the Ukrainian fighters at Azovstal steel plant who were captured by Russian soldiers.

Ukraine demanded that urgent measures be taken to prevent the use of Ukrainian defense lawyers in any kind of so-called "tribunals" or trials, the statement said.

"Conducting any trials of prisoners of war for propaganda purposes is prohibited and equated to war crimes. We appeal to the world with the demand to use all available mechanisms to protect our prisoners of war and bring the Russian Federation and specific individuals to justice for their crimes," said Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Deputy minister of justice Iryna Mudra said that trials cannot be held for prisoners of war.

"We expect that the ECHR will carefully consider and grant Ukraine's request," she said.

Alexander Dugin, a prominent Russian ultranationalist, said his daughter Darya Dugina died for her country, as he delivered an emotional speech at a memorial service in Moscow Tuesday.

Dugina, the editor of a Russian disinformation website, was killed by a car bomb on the outskirts of Moscow on Saturday.

"Since childhood, her first words, which of course we taught her, were Russia: Our state, our people, our empire," Dugin said at his daughter's memorial.

"She had no fear, and the last thing she said, when we talked at the Festival of Tradition, she said to me: 'Dad, I feel like a warrior, I feel like a hero. I want to be like this, I don't want any other fate. I want to be with my people, with my country,'" Dugin said. 

"At my last lecture, we were next to each other and I told her that our history is a constant battle of light and darkness. God and his adversary, and that we are now in this and our political situation and our war in Ukraine, but not with Ukraine. This is also part of this war: Light and darkness," he added. 

Dugin said he "could feel how happy she was" after the Russian Federation awarded Dugina a posthumous order of courage in a decree signed by Putin on Monday. 

The Russian President sent his condolences to Dugina’s family on Monday.

"A vile, cruel crime cut short the life of Darya Dugina, a bright, talented person with a real Russian heart – kind, loving, sympathetic and open. A journalist, scientist, philosopher, war correspondent, she honestly served the people, the Fatherland, she proved by deed what it means to be a patriot of Russia," Putin said in a statement published on the Kremlin's Telegram channel. 

Denis Pushilin, head of the Donetsk People's Republic, also extended his condolences and praised Dugina's support for the Donbas region, saying she "fearlessly came to the burning cities of the republic to tell the world the truth about what is happening in our country," in remarks delivered on his behalf during the service. 

Russia has blamed Ukrainian special services for the murder of Dugina, TASS reported on Monday. 

Ukraine has denied any involvement in Dugina's killing, calling Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) claims fiction.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed that the Ukrainian flag will fly "where it’s supposed to be" in all currently occupied parts of Ukraine.

"Today I'd like to talk not only about the past of our flag but also about its future," said Zelensky on Tuesday in a speech to mark Ukraine's Day of the National Flag.

It comes ahead of the country's independence day on Wednesday, which will mark 31 years since Ukraine broke its ties with the Soviet Union.

Events to mark the day have been banned in Kyiv as officials warn that Russia may carry out missile attacks against the Ukrainian capital. In the city of Kharkiv, authorities have announced a curfew from 7 p.m. on the eve of Independence Day to 7 a.m. on the day after.

Wednesday also marks six months since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Poland's President Andrzej Duda arrived in Kyiv Tuesday for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, his office said in a Twitter post. 

Poland, which borders Ukraine to the west, has received millions of Ukrainian refugees and donated military equipment to Kyiv since Russia's invasion began in February.

Some context: Poland was among a number of countries named by Zelensky on Monday as part of a new initiative to reinforce ties between Kyiv and Eastern European and Baltic states. The Ukrainian president described the initiative as "a very promising line of our work in the Euro-Atlantic direction."

The Kremlin's justification for invading Ukraine "is a lie," a Russian paratrooper who previously publicly condemned his country's war in Ukraine has told CNN.

Two weeks ago, Pavel Filatyev spoke out against the conflict in a 141-page-long testimony posted to his VKontakte social media page, then fled Russia. He is the first serving member of the Russian military to publicly criticize the invasion of Ukraine and leave the country.

Now he tells CNN that his fellow troops are tired, hungry and disillusioned — and that the Kremlin's war effort is "destroying peaceful lives."

"We understood that we were dragged into a serious conflict where we are simply destroying towns and not actually liberating anyone," Filatyev told CNN's Matthew Chance. CNN is not disclosing the location of the interview for the security of the interviewee.

Filatyev, 33, told CNN "corruption" and repression are rife in his home country and said his unit — which was based in Crimea and sent to Ukraine entering Kherson early in the conflict — was ill-equipped and given little explanation for Russia's invasion.

According to Filatyev, the soldiers and their commanders did not know what they were expected to do in Ukraine. He added that they soon became disillusioned with the government's reasoning for its invasion after arriving in Kherson and facing resistance from locals who did not want to be "liberated."

Read the full story here.

The Japanese government on Tuesday said it will continue to work with the Group of Seven and other related countries to impose sanctions against Russia and provide assistance to Ukraine.

His comments followed a meeting held with senior members of the Japanese government, in which Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told ministers to work closely with the G7 to ensure stable energy supplies and that Japan's defenses are secure.

The US government is urging Americans in Ukraine to leave the country immediately, warning that Russia is stepping up efforts to launch attacks on civilian infrastructure and government facilities in the coming days.

Some context: The renewed US warning comes as Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine approaches the six-month mark on Wednesday and follows similar warnings, from Ukrainian President President Volodymyr Zelensky and other officials, that Moscow may carry out intense attacks, including missile strikes, to coincide with Ukraine's Independence Day on Wednesday.

In Kyiv, the city military administration issued a ban on all big gatherings between Monday and Thursday, saying "it is forbidden to hold mass events, peaceful meetings, rallies and other events related to a large gathering of people."

Read the full story here.

Russia has awarded a posthumous order of courage to Darya Dugina, the daughter of influential ultra-nationalist philosopher Alexander Dugin, according to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin on Monday.

The decree notes she was awarded for her work as a correspondent for Tsargrad Media.

Russia has blamed the Ukrainian security service for the car bombing that killed Dugina. Ukraine has denied any involvement in the explosion. 

Both Dugin and Dugina have been sanctioned by the United States and the United Kingdom for acting to destabilize Ukraine.

The US Treasury sanctioned Dugina in March as the chief editor for the disinformation website United World International, which it claimed was owned by Putin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin and pushed messages suggesting Ukraine would "perish" if it was admitted to NATO.

Ukraine began a new initiative set to reinforce its ties with Eastern European and Baltic countries, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Monday in his nightly address. 

The Ukrainian president described the initiative as “a very promising line of our work in the Euro-Atlantic direction.”

He also called on European countries to add an eighth sanctions package against Russia, saying “the longer the interval between sanctions packages, the greater Russia's audacity.”

In his address, Zelensky also announced that search operations have ended following a Russian attack against a residential building in Kharkiv last week.