A person claiming to be a former Russian officer desires to offer proof to the ICC about Ukraine crimes

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A Russian claiming to be a former officer with the Wagner Group has arrived in the Netherlands and says he desires to offer proof to the International Criminal Court, which is investigating atrocities within the warfare in Ukraine.

Dutch information program EenVandaag reported Monday that Igor Salikov had flown into the Netherlands. The information present spoke to him through a videolink. He is believed to have utilized for asylum and couldn’t be reached for remark Tuesday.

Salikov mentioned he was in jap Ukraine in 2014 when battle erupted there, and in 2022 when Russia invaded its neighbor.

“I know where the orders came from,” he advised EenVandaag. His claims couldn’t be independently verified.

The Wagner Group, a navy contractor created by Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, deployed to jap Ukraine when a Moscow-backed separatist insurrection erupted there in 2014. It additionally took half in Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, spearheading the battle for the jap metropolis of Bakhmut that was captured by Russian forces in May.

Prigozhin, who staged a quick mutiny in June when he despatched Wagner mercenaries to march on Moscow demanding the ouster of high navy leaders, was killed in an air crash in August.

The ICC issued a world arrest warrant in March for Russian President Vladimir Putin, alleging that he was answerable for the kidnapping of youngsters from Ukraine. Information concerning the Russian chain of command may very well be essential in constructing extra circumstances in opposition to senior Russians concerned within the warfare.

The court docket‘s prosecution office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Salikov also claims to have information about the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014.

All 298 passengers and crew were killed when the plane was shot down over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014, by a Russian missile system known as a Buk TELAR. A Dutch court convicted two Russians and a pro-Moscow Ukrainian rebel in November 2022 for their roles in downing the Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur flight.

In February, the Joint Investigation Team said it had uncovered “strong indications” that Putin approved the supply of heavy anti-aircraft weapons to Ukrainian separatists who shot down the plane.

However, the team said they had insufficient evidence to prosecute Putin or any other suspects and they suspended their 8½-year inquiry.

The investigative team is made up of police and judicial authorities from the Netherlands, Australia, Malaysia, Ukraine and Belgium — nations hard hit by the downing.

“The Joint Investigation Team that investigated the downing of MH17 follows with great interest the news that a Russian military (member) possibly wants to testify in the Netherlands at the ICC about Russian war crimes,” the team said in a written response to questions from The Associated Press.“If this person has specific and reliable inside information on the chain of command that authorized the Buk TELAR that shot down MH17, the JIT would be interested in receiving it.”

While the active investigation into the downing of the Boeing 777 was halted in February, “our door remains open for Russian insider witnesses. The JIT remains committed to the MH17 investigation,” the team’s assertion mentioned.