Ukraine war briefing: Ukrainian court jails Russian soldier for killing PoW in landmark sentence

A Ukrainian court has sentenced a Russian soldier to life in prison after finding him guilty of killing a Ukrainian prisoner of war – the first time Ukraine has jailed a suspect on such charges. The court in the south-eastern city of Zaporizhzhia found Dmitry Kurashov, 27, guilty of shooting dead Vitalii Hodniuk, a Ukrainian soldier who had surrendered in January 2024 when his dugout was captured by Russian forces. Kurashov, who was taken prisoner by Ukrainian forces along with other Russian troops soon after and pleaded guilty in court, although he later told reporters he was innocent and wanted to be exchanged in a prisoner swap. He told Reuters after the ruling on Thursday that he did not plan to appeal. The Ukrainian prosecutor general’s office said criminal investigations were under way into the murder of 322 Ukrainian servicemen who had unconditionally laid down their arms and/or surrendered since Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Ukrainian drones struck a major oil refinery in Russia’s Volgograd region for the second time in almost three months, Ukraine’s general staff said on Thursday. Russian officials did not confirm the attack, although the local governor said drones started a fire at an unspecified industrial facility in the region. The refinery is the largest producer of fuel and lubricants in Russia’s southern federal district, processing more than 15m tons of crude annually, according to Ukrainian officials.

Saboteurs inside Russia burned dozens of locomotives in a bid to hamper the logistics of Russia’s armed forces, Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence said. The Freedom of Russia group used molotov cocktails to set fire to the control and power supply systems of dozens of locomotives that transported military cargo, according to a GUR statement on Thursday. It was not possible to independently verify the claim and Russian officials had no immediate comment.

Sweden and Ukraine said they had signed a letter of intent to establish a hub in Ukraine to develop new weapons technologies. The plans would see Swedish personnel working on site in Ukraine, said the Swedish defence minister, Pal Jonson. The announcement on Thursday comes after the two countries in October signed another letter of intent on aviation cooperation, which the Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, said could lead to Ukraine buying up to 150 of Sweden’s Gripen E fighter jets.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said foreign countries were helping Kyiv in its efforts to keep the power grid operating amid Russia’s onslaught on its energy infrastructure. “Practically every day, our power engineers, repair brigades and the State Emergency Service of Ukraine are carrying out restorations on-site after attacks,” the Ukrainian president said. “Hits keep occurring across various points, especially in our communities, and especially near the Russian border and close to the front.”

Swiss commodity trader Gunvor said it had withdrawn its proposal to buy foreign assets of Russian energy company Lukoil after the US Treasury called it Russia’s “puppet” and signalled Washington opposed the deal. The move on Thursday scuttles what would have been Gunvor’s largest acquisition and underscores Washington’s attempt to use sanctions to isolate Russia and choke revenues it uses to fight the war in Ukraine.

A Moscow-backed court in Ukraine’s occupied Donetsk region has jailed two Colombians for 13 years each for fighting for Kyiv. The pair had fought for Ukraine in 2023 and 2024 and then vanished in July while on a stopover in Russia’s ally Venezuela en route back home after their deployment. Colombian daily El Tiempo reported in July 2024 that police arrested them in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, still wearing their Ukrainian army uniforms. The pair were next seen in a video published by Russia’s FSB security service, handcuffed, wearing Russian prison clothing and being walked through a court building by masked officers.