- Title: UKRAINE-CRISIS/PILOT Ukrainian pilot Savchenko denied court hearing in Moscow
- Date: 21st August 2015
- Summary: ROSTOV-ON-DON, RUSSIA (AUGUST 21, 2015) (REUTERS) COURT ENTRANCE, SIGN ON WALL READING (Russian): 'RUSSIAN FEDERATION / ROSTOV REGIONAL COURT' PEOPLE IN COURT ROOM, JUDGE AT PODIUM, UKRAINIAN PILOT, NADEZHDA SAVCHENKO, SEEN ON SCREEN SAVCHENKO SEEN ON SCREEN SMILING GUARD, SCREEN IN BACKGROUND SAVCHENKO'S LAWYER ILYA NOVIKOV SPEAKING, SAVCHENKO'S SISTER, VERA SAVCHENKO, IN
- Embargoed: 5th September 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA13N39IEWCNIZBHU3JB82ME2CP
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A case of Ukrainian military pilot Nadezhda Savchenko will not he heard in Moscow, a judge in Russia's southern city of Rostov-on-Don ruled on Friday (August 21), more than a year after she was captured by Moscow-backed rebels in east Ukraine and handed over to Russia.
Savchenko watched the court hearing by video from the pre-trial detention centre. As the judge read ot the court ruling, Savchenko said 'Glory to Ukraine, glory to heroes' and left the room without waiting for the procedure to finish.
The Ukrainian pilot's case will be heard shortly in Rostov-on-Don. Ukrainian pilot's lawyer Ilya Novikov said the defence will not make any further appeals in order to start the trial as soon as possible.
Savchenko is charged with aiding the killing of two Russian journalists in east Ukraine and crossing into Russia illegally. She denies guilt and says was she spirited into Russia by the rebels after being captured in a day-long battle in June, 2014.
Savchenko faces up to 25 years in jail if found guilty.
Novikov said this verdict is possible, but the defence does not plan to stop at this decision.
"I think, that indeed in this case in the court of first instance we will get the verdict of 25 years of detention. It does not surprise or frighten us, Nadezhda or her defence. We said from the very beginning, that we perceive this verdict as an intermediate step, because the situation and the status of Nadezhda Savchenko seriously differs from any person tried in Russia within around 50 years. I think, they have not tried to bring in court the deputies of PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe), who have international immunity, and people who have such a level of diplomatic and international support," the lawyer said.
The plight of the 34-year-old Savchenko, who fought against separatist rebels in the ranks of a pro-Kiev volunteer battalion in east Ukraine, made her a national hero in Ukraine and Western leaders repeatedly urged Moscow to set her free.
To maintain international interest in her case, Savchenko's defence lawyers have toured European capitals and met politicians in European capitals as well as the United States. Her biography, written from behind bars, is also in the works.
The lawyers of the Ukrainian pilot say she is a political prisoner of the Kremlin, which is at loggerheads with the West over the conflict in Ukraine, and has no chance for a fair trial in Russia.
Savchenko's sister, Vera, came to the court room wearing a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt. After the hearing she said her sister's supporters will not concede.
"Although Nadya (Nadezhda) is tired of it all, she is not defeated and she will not be defeated. Of course she misses Ukraine, that is the most difficult thing, because it is hard not to hear, not to see what is dear to you. This shows intensively when one parts with the motherland. That is ok, we will not turn our backs on our guys like Putin did. We will fight for them as long as we are alive," she said, reminding of a detained Russian serviceman Vladimir Starkov.
Starkov, 37, from Russia's Kirov region, was captured at the end of July with a cargo of military equipment in eastern Ukraine and later charged with terrorism.
In a video address on Aug. 10 Starkov, sitting in an empty room wearing military uniform, asked the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, to recognise him as a Russian officer and to provide assistance in getting back to Russia.
More than 6,500 people have been killed in 15 months of the conflict in east Ukraine where Kiev and the West say Moscow is driving the rebellion, providing it with troops and arms.
Russia sides with the rebels but denies arming them and says is not directly militarily involved. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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