The Wall Street Journal reports that Russian POWs who return from Ukrainian captivity are often met not with gratitude, but with suspicion, extensive FSB questioning, and in many cases, a one-way ticket back to the front. A 2022 law made voluntary surrender a crime; one soldier, Roman Ivanishin, received a 15-year sentence after returning in a prisoner swap on charges including surrender and desertion. The reported treatment runs counter to the Geneva Conventions, which bar putting former POWs back into active combat; a Russian Defense Ministry document viewed by the Journal argues those rules don't fully apply since the war is ongoing.
Author: Kate Seamons with Newser.AI
Published at: 2025-12-27 22:45:00
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