Russian troops are forcing captured British fighters to ask Boris Johnson to release Vladimir Putin’s pal in exchange for their freedom.
Russia is shamelessly exploiting the heroic British POWs Shaun Pinner, 48, and Aiden Aslin, 28, to compel the release of Viktor Medvedchuk, 67, Putin’s close Ukrainian buddy.
To promote the concept of a swap, both were paraded in front of propaganda TV cameras.
Last Monday, Kyiv reported the capture of Medvedchuk, a Ukrainian opposition figure who has long been seen as Putin’s man in the war-torn country.
On Russian official television, the men are seen making separate requests to Mr Johnson, whom they want to put pressure on President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Russia has tried to exploit the “British mercenaries” for propaganda reasons since their detention in Mariupol.
The guys in Russian custody appear to have been advised that their only way out is if the Prime Minister secures Medvedchuk’s release, which would be perceived as kowtowing to Putin.
Medvedchuk’s wife has demanded that the two men be released in return for her husband.
“I, Oxana Marchenko, spouse of opposition politician and people’s representative of Ukraine Viktor Medvedchyuk, address the family of detained British citizens Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner,” she said in a video speech.
“It is within your ability to convince Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of your nation, to exert influence over Ukrainian authorities and secure Aiden and Shaun’s release in return for… my husband Viktor Medvedchyuk.”
Marchenko, a former TV personality who presented ‘X-Factor Ukraine,’ has also requested his release from Ukraine’s president.
Medvedchuk has been described as a “close buddy” of Putin, who is the godfather of his daughter and with whom he has even vacationed.
He was the Kremlin’s most trusted and prominent lieutenant in Ukraine as the leader of the country’s major pro-Moscow party, the Opposition Platform For Life.
Last year, Medvedchuk was imprisoned under house arrest on allegations of treason and terrorism funding, which he rejects.
Aidan was paraded on Russian television on Thursday with a cut across his forehead and one eye half-closed after his battalion ran out of food and ammo in Mariupol.
Shaun, who relocated to Mariupol four years ago to live with his second wife Larysa, became a “contract soldier” in the Ukrainian Army.
Russian propagandists claimed he was murdered near Mariupol at the end of last month, but sources informed The Sun that he was injured and was being treated at a field hospital.
