Ukrainian soldier pleads 'partly guilty' at Russia's first war crime trial

They say he ordered the men to speak Ukrainian, and shot one of them who did not use the correct pronunciation.

 Participants hold Ukrainian national flag during a rally of relatives and friends of defenders of the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works in Mariupol, demanding to recognise Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism after killing Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) in a prison in Olenivka, outside of Donetsk. (photo credit: REUTERS/PAVLO PALAMARCHUK)
Participants hold Ukrainian national flag during a rally of relatives and friends of defenders of the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works in Mariupol, demanding to recognise Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism after killing Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) in a prison in Olenivka, outside of Donetsk.
(photo credit: REUTERS/PAVLO PALAMARCHUK)

 A Ukrainian soldier pleaded "partly guilty" on Tuesday at Russia's first trial for war crimes in connection with its military campaign in Ukraine.

Anton Cherednik, a member of Ukraine's naval infantry, faced charges in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don of trying to seize power by force, of using prohibited methods of warfare and of murdering a civilian in Mariupol in March last year in the conflict's early days.

It was the first time Russia had accused a member of Ukraine's armed forces of war crimes, according to Russian news outlets and the court's press service.

Cherednik stood in the enclosed glass dock wearing a dark t-shirt and coat.

Outside the court, his lawyer Vladimir Bakulov said Cherednik had pleaded "partly guilty" and had requested a meeting with the judge to explain his position. The case will resume next week, Russian news agencies reported.

Darya Trepova, who is suspected of the killing of Russian military blogger Maxim Fomin widely known by the name of Vladlen Tatarsky, sits behind a glass wall of an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, April 4, 2023.  (credit: EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA/REUTERS)
Darya Trepova, who is suspected of the killing of Russian military blogger Maxim Fomin widely known by the name of Vladlen Tatarsky, sits behind a glass wall of an enclosure for defendants before a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, April 4, 2023. (credit: EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA/REUTERS)

Prosecutors say Cherednik detained two men in Mariupol, a largely Russian-speaking Ukrainian port that fell to Russian forces several weeks later and has now been declared annexed by Moscow.

They say he ordered the men to speak Ukrainian, and shot one of them who did not use the correct pronunciation, the TASS news agency reported.

Russian forces seized Mariupol last May after weeks of attritional fighting.

Alleged war crimes in Mariupol 

Ukraine says Russia destroyed 95% of the city and killed tens of thousands of civilians. It accuses Russia of several war crimes there, including the bombing of a maternity hospital and a theater where hundreds of civilians were sheltering.

Russia says it does not target civilians, and that the incidents were staged by Ukraine.


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Ukraine has tried and sentenced a number of Russian soldiers for killing unarmed civilians.