Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said he is outraged at a ruling by Russia’s Supreme Court on Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was convicted for espionage and sentenced to 12 years in a high-security prison.
“I am outraged by the Russian Supreme Court ruling on Roman Sushchenko. This case has been a farce all along, and the absurdity of Roman’s ‘trials’ is obvious to the entire civilized world. The Russian Federation is still in 1937 [the peak of the Great Purge, or the Great Terror, which was a campaign of political repression in the Soviet Union], while we are fighting against Russian aggression and for the release of Ukrainian hostages by the Kremlin,” Poroshenko said on Facebook on Sept. 12.
“Roman, your home is waiting for you and is fighting for you, and the day of your liberation is steadily drawing near. We are uniting the international community and working on extending the sanction pressure for your soonest possible liberation and the liberation of the rest of our countrymen,” Poroshenko said in addressing Sushchenko.
Sushchenko was arrested in October 2016 on charges of espionage (Article 276 of the Criminal Code of Russia).
Sushchenko, who lived in France for over six years while being a Paris correspondent of the Ukrinform news agency, paid numerous visits to Russia and during his detention was on a personal business in Russia, where his relatives live.
On July 4, the Moscow City Court sentenced Sushchenko to 12 years in a high-security penitentiary. The court hearings were held behind closed doors as the case was “classified.” Sushchenko did not admit his guilt.
On Sept. 12, the Russian Supreme Court upheld the sentence. “The sentence handed down by the Moscow City Court on July 4 is upheld. The appeals are declined,” the Supreme Court appeals board said in its decision. Thus, the sentence has taken legal effect and is subject to enforcement.
