Russia Exploits Ukrainian POWs to Fight Against Their Own Country

Russia is reportedly sending Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) to fight on Moscow's side in the war, according to the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. The POWs allegedly swore allegiance to Russia and joined a battalion that entered service last month. The authenticity of the report and videos released by the news agency, as well as the coercion of the POWs, could not be immediately confirmed. Experts argue that such actions would violate the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit POWs from being exposed to combat or dangerous conditions. Russia has previously used inmates from its own prisons to fight in Ukraine, and it is also attempting to bolster its forces through a conscription campaign in occupied regions.