Australian sentenced to 13 years in penal colony by Russia
An Australian who fought for Ukraine has been sentenced to 13 years in a penal colony by a Russian-controlled court.
Oscar Jenkins, a 33 year-old from Melbourne, was convicted of being a 'mercenary in an armed conflict' in the east Luhansk region of Russian-occupied Ukraine.
Prosecutors installed by Russia said on Friday that Mr Jenkins 'took part in combat operations against Russian military personnel between March and December 2024'.
They posted a video showing Mr Jenkins standing in court behind a glass screen, his hands behind his back and his expression despondent.
The former biology teacher was ordered to serve time in a ' strict regime penal colony '.
Penny Wong, Australia's foreign minister, said: 'The Australian government is appalled at the sham trial and 13-year sentence given to Australian man Oscar Jenkins.'
Ms Wong added that Australia had 'made clear' to Moscow that Mr Jenkins should be treated as a prisoner of war, as a serving member of the regular Ukraine army.
'Russia is obligated to treat him in accordance with international humanitarian law, including humane treatment,' the foreign minister said.
Australia had 'serious concerns' for Jenkins, Ms Wong added, and was working the Ukrainian authorities and the International Committee of the Red Cross for his welfare and release.
Russia and its eastern Ukrainian proxies class foreigners fighting in Ukraine as 'mercenaries'.
This means they face criminal prosecutions, rather than being treated as captured prisoners of war with the protections and rights of the Geneva Convention.
Captured in 2024
Russian forces captured Mr Jenkins in December 2024. Later that month, a video shared by a Russian military blogger showed him being roughly interrogated and slapped in the face.
He was believed to have been killed in captivity, until Russia confirmed he was alive.
A later video showed him undergoing a medical examination, with his captors heard joking in the background that his blood pressure showed 'he wasn't dead'.
Australia's government said it was providing consular support to Mr Jenkins' family.
Australia opposed the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, condemning it as illegal and immoral.
Ties with Moscow had already been damaged by the July 2014 downing of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 by a Russian-made missile over eastern Ukraine, which resulted in the deaths of 298 people including 38 Australians.
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