Swedish foreign minister calls on Russia to release Sentsov
Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Margot Wallström has called on the Russian authorities to release Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov illegally imprisoned in Russia.
"Deeply concerning reports on Oleg Sentsov’s deteriorating health condition. His detention violates international law and is based on a legal process which did not meet elementary standards of justice. We call on Russia to release him & other illegally detained Ukrainian citizens," the Swedish minister wrote on Twitter.
As Ukrinform reported, Sentsov, who was illegally sentenced to 20 years in a penal colony, on May 14, 2018 declared a hunger strike demanding the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners of the Kremlin. On May 28, Sentsov agreed to supportive therapy.
On August 7, his lawyer Dmitry Dinze said that Sentsov's health condition had deteriorated.
About 70 Ukrainians are political prisoners in Russia and in the occupied Crimea. This list also includes Ukrinform journalist Roman Sushchenko, who was sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment in a high-security penal colony on fabricated charges of "espionage."
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