Denmark, Sweden and Italy expel Russian diplomats over allegations of war crimes

Speaking via video link at a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Student That Russian commanders and soldiers be brought before a special court to “immediately” try them for the atrocities committed in Bucha.

“They killed entire families, adults and children, and tried to burn their bodies,” Zelensky said. This undermines the entire architecture of global security. They destroy everything.”

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 100 Russian diplomats In nearly a dozen countries that have been asked to leave their jobs – Estonia, Latvia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Italy and Denmark were the latest to announce the layoffs on Tuesday. In recent years, Russian diplomats have also been expelled from several Western countries in response to the Kremlin’s actions, including hacking related to the 2016 US presidential election and after former Russian spy Sergei Skripal was expelled. Targeted with nerve gas in England.

Latvia’s foreign minister, Edgar Rinkevix, said his country would expel 13 Russian diplomats and employees and close two Russian consulates. Estonia said it had informed the Russian ambassador It will close two Russian consular posts and expel 14 diplomats and consular staff.

Also Tuesday, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell He said And he had decided “to designate a number of officials of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the European Union persona non grata because they are carrying out activities incompatible with their diplomatic status.” The European Union declared 19 members of the mission persona non grata.

The Danish Foreign Ministry said 15 Russian diplomats She is accused of espionage and will have 14 days to leave the country. Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod said the move sends a “clear signal to Moscow” that Denmark will not accept “Russian intelligence officers spying on Danish soil”.

Also on Tuesday, France’s counter-terrorism prosecutor’s office said it had opened three war crimes investigations related to “acts likely to have been committed at the expense of French nationals in Ukraine in recent weeks,” giving French courts jurisdiction.

French authorities said the accidents are believed to have occurred in Mariupol, Hostomel, Chernihiv between February 24 and March 16. Presumed offenses include “deliberate attacks against civilians not participating in hostilities”, “voluntary attacks causing psychological harm”, and willful harm. or the destruction of civilian objects and property, and the deprivation of civilians of things necessary for their survival.

The French prosecutors were already open an investigation Last month, after the death of French-Irish photographer Pierre Zakrzewski with Fox News, who was murdered in Ukraine on March 14.

After images of Bosha emerged over the weekend, France and other European countries agreed that stronger measures were needed to target Russia, but differed on whether those measures should include a complete ban on Russian oil and gas.

However, Berlin on Monday moved to Control of a subsidiary At the Russian energy giant Gazprom, three days after the St. Petersburg-based company announced it was giving up its business in the country.

The ministry said its decision to place the German subsidiary of Gazprom under the tutelage of the government came “against a background of unclear legal relations and follows a violation of the reporting obligation under the Foreign Trade and Payments Ordinance”. She said it was not clear who owns the two Russian companies that are going to acquire and liquidate Gazprom Germania, describing this as risks to national security.

The ministry said the company “manages vital infrastructure in Germany and is therefore of great importance for the supply of gas”.

Sammy Westfalle, Emily Rohala, Isaac Stanley Baker and Ellen Francis contributed to this report.