Russian Embassy Received No Requests about 'US Mercenaries': Ambassador
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Russian Embassy in Washington has so far received no requests from the US administration regarding two US mercenaries captured in Ukraine, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said, answering to media questions.
"There were no requests to the embassy. I do not confirm receiving a request of this kind from the US side," the head of the Russian diplomatic mission said, TASS reported.
US Department of State spokesperson Ned Price said on Tuesday the US administration has been "in touch with Russian authorities regarding US citizens who may have been captured while fighting in Ukraine."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists on Tuesday that two Americans recently captured in Donbass were being accused of mercenarism and were therefore not subject to the Geneva Convention.
The Russian president’s press secretary noted that the actions of the captured Americans "should be investigated and they should be brought to justice." That said, he didn’t count out the possibility that the court would sentence them to capital punishment.
Last week, the UK’s Daily Telegraph reported that two former US servicemen, 39-year-old Alexander Drueke and 27-year-old Andy Huynh, were captured near Kharkov.
On June 16, the US Department of State said the United States was ready for contacts with Russia over the American citizens detained near Kharkov who came to Ukraine to participate in combat. The agency reiterated its strong recommendations to US citizens to refrain from visiting Ukraine.