What happened in the last few hours

Russian justice sentences opponent Vladimir Kara-Murza to 25 years in prison. He was poisoned twice and sentenced to live the next quarter century in prison for criticizing the war against Ukraine. Visibly deteriorated after suffering a year in pre-trial detention, Vladimir Kara-Murza (Moscow, 41), one of the most prominent figures of the Russian opposition, was sentenced by a Moscow court to remain locked up for 25 years in a strict prison regime. Kara-Murza, awarded by the Council of Europe in 2022 with the Václav Havel Prize for Human Rights, was accused of the crimes of high treason, cooperation with dissident organizations declared “undesirable” by the Kremlin and of spreading false information about the Russian army in the invasion of Ukraine. Specifically, the opposition politician participated in several conferences in Western countries, where he openly denounced that Russian troops were perpetrating war crimes in the neighboring country.

Kara-Murza’s wife says his conviction is a demonstration that the Kremlin fears him. The wife of Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza said on Monday that the 25-year prison sentence handed down by a Russian court is a recognition of the effectiveness of his work and a demonstration that the authorities fear him. “I understand that this sentence is a recognition of the efficiency of Vladimir’s work,” she said during the event, broadcast by videoconference, in the company of a lawyer for her husband. “He has shown time and time again that he will not back down, that he will not give up his fight, that he will not betray his country and betray his ideals, that he will continue to fight.”

US Ambassador Visits ‘WSJ’ Journalist Detained in Russia. US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy visited Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in prison, as she announced on Monday through a brief message in Russian on her Telegram account. “This is the first time we’ve had consular access to Evan since his wrongful detention over two weeks ago. It feels good and it’s holding. We reiterate our call for his immediate release.”

Ex-Wagner mercenary claims he was ordered to kill civilians in Ukraine. A former mercenary from the Wagner group has denounced having been ordered to kill Ukrainian civilians, including teenagers, according to the organization Gulagu.net, which denounces abuses in Russian prisons. “They gave the order to shoot everyone over 15. Between 20 and 24 people were shot, including ten teenagers aged between 15 and 17,” said the former mercenary, identified as Azamat Uldarov, recruited by Wagner in prison.

Brazil reiterates in front of Lavrov its opposition to sanctions against Russia and its demand for an immediate ceasefire. The Brazilian government reiterated this Monday before the Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, its opposition to the sanctions against Russia and its demand for an immediate ceasefire in the war in Ukraine, as well as its intention to organize a multinational group to help with peace negotiations. In the region. Lavrov is on an official visit to Brasilia on Monday.

Slovakia completes delivery of 13 promised MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine. Slovakia announced on Monday that the delivery of the 13 MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine was definitively completed, as promised last March jointly with Poland, which had committed about thirty of this type of Soviet-made combat aircraft. . Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Nad announced this via his profile on the social network Twitter. “The thirteen Slovak MiG-29s have been safely handed over to the Ukrainian Air Force,” he wrote.

Czech Republic says it won’t veto Ukrainian grain imports but calls for EU solution. The Czech Republic’s Agriculture Ministry said on Tuesday that its government would not follow in the footsteps of Poland, Hungary and Slovakia to ban imports of Ukrainian grain. According to the statement, the Czech Republic will not approve a veto on the arrival of Ukrainian cereals, but it demands a solution at European level for the consequences that the arrival of cereals from Kiev has on Community territory without paying tariffs. “At the moment, the Czech Republic does not plan to ban the import of Ukrainian grain and other raw materials from Ukraine,” the statement said.