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"Treason:" Russia seeks 15-year sentence for ballerina after she donated €45 to a charity that supports Ukraine

www.bbc.com Russia seeks 15-year sentence for US-Russian ballerina Ksenia Karelina

Ksenia Karelina pleads guilty to treason charge after February arrest for donating to pro-Ukraine charity.

Russia seeks 15-year sentence for US-Russian ballerina Ksenia Karelina

Russian-American ballerina Ksenia Karelina has pleaded guilty to treason charges after she was arrested for donating money to a charity supporting Ukraine.

Russian prosecutors are seeking a 15-year sentence after the security services accused Ms Karelina of collecting money that was used to purchase tactical supplies for the Ukrainian army.

She was detained by authorities in Yekaterinburg, about 1,600km (1,000 miles) east of Moscow after a family visit in February.

The sentence comes one week after Russia and the West carried out the largest prisoner exchange since the Cold War, where 24 people jailed in seven different countries were exchanged.

Ms Karelina's lawyer said the prosecutors' request for a 15-year sentence in a penal colony was too severe as the defendant had cooperated with the investigation.

Mikhail Mushailov also said it was "impossible" for Ms Karelina to have been included in the recent prisoner exchange, because an exchange can only happen once the court verdict comes into force.

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  • It is not even "Russia's war". Are you aware of how Crimea was made a part of Ukraine in 1995?

    • Ahh, finally! So this is where we are going here.

      It is not even “Russia’s war”.

      Who invaded, then? Who massacred settlements like Bucha? Who declared that Ukraine isn't a state but a part of Russia?

      Are you aware of how Crimea was made a part of Ukraine in 1995?

      No, I am not. Because Crimea was already a part of Ukraine beforehand (1954/1992), acknowledged by Russia. But I wonder what your point is? Ukraine deserved this war?

      • So this is where we are going here.

        I'm going nowhere. Please let's stay on track.

        Who invaded, then?

        It's not like Putin woke up one morning and thought "I'm bored, I'm gonna invade Ukraine".

        Who massacred settlements like Bucha?

        Do you deny the fact that both sides committed (and continue to commit) war crimes?

        Because Crimea was already a part of Ukraine beforehand (1954/1992), acknowledged by Russia.

        Crimea attempted to become an independent republic between 1992 and 1995. In 1995, the then government of Ukraine declared the government of Crimea inadmissible on its own authority and thus de facto annexed Crimea. It is debatable whether it was a "part of Ukraine" between the dissolution of the USSR and 1995.

        But I wonder what your point is?

        My point is that there is a long history of injustice in East Ukraine.

        Ukraine deserved this war?

        No country deserves a war. I just found the phrase "Russia's war" too simple.

        • Please let’s stay on track.

          I won't stop you exposing yourself.

          It’s not like Putin woke up one morning and thought “I’m bored, I’m gonna invade Ukraine”.

          That's not an answer to my question. Who invaded?

          Do you deny the fact that both sides committed (and continue to commit) war crimes?

          Do you deny the extents of the crimes that happened in Butcha when attempting to "bothside" Ukraine and Russia here or do you actually think Ukraine has done equally horrible things?

          It is debatable whether it was a “part of Ukraine” between the dissolution of the USSR and 1995.

          From your source: In June 1992, the parties reached a compromise, that Crimea would have considerable autonomy but remain part of Ukraine.

          I just found the phrase “Russia’s war” too simple.

          Seeing how much difficulty you have to correctly name the country invading, I bet you do!

          Let me ask: is it the German political landscape you are at home at or maybe even the Russian? Because even the putinophilic far-right nutjobs from the AfD only excuse Russia's invasion (as does the equally putinophilic and equally populistic self-declared "left" poster girl Sarah W), but denying it is new. In which rabbit hole do I have to crawl to find these kind of positions?

          • I won’t stop you exposing yourself.

            I don't think that "exposing" is the right term here. You're behaving as if you've let me in on a secret. That's not the case.

            Who invaded?

            Russia did, and it had reasons for that. Whether I agree with the reasons is not the issue here, by the way, and you simply don't know either.

            do you actually think Ukraine has done equally horrible things?

            I do not hold the view that there are cruel and less cruel war crimes. "But these war crimes are less horrible!" tells more about you than about Russia and/or Ukraine.

            Crimea would have considerable autonomy but remain part of Ukraine.

            And Ukraine has cancelled this autonomy at the expense of the people of Crimea. Do you agree with me?

            Seeing how much difficulty you have to correctly name the country invading, I bet you do!

            Lol, seriously. No, it's not difficult for me. This "aha, WHO attacked WHOM, huh? YOU SEE!!!" just misses the point of everything that's happening in eastern Ukraine; and you're not proving anything to anyone.

            is it the German political landscape you are at home at or maybe even the Russian?

            Could you please tone down your pitiful attempts at an ad-hominem discussion? It's getting tiring.

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