Leader of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic Valeriy Bolotov said the Ukrainian journalists detained on July 1 have been accused of spying.
“The journalists have been detained on counts of spying for and assisting the Ukrainian authorities,” he said at a press conference.
He said an inquiry would be conducted and a decision made on the detained journalists’ future.
“They are in the Luhansk republic and their condition is satisfactory,” he said.
Andriy Lysenko, spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, said earlier on Tuesday that Hromadske TV journalist Anastasia Stanko and her cameraman Illia Bezkorovainy were alive and that talks were underway on their release.
Hromadske TV, too, released a report about Stanko’s and her cameraman’s detention by representatives of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s representative on freedom of the media, Dunja Mijatovic, expressed indignation over Hromadske TV reporters’ detention and urged their release.
