Ukrainian Court Arrests Russian Servicemen Kidnapped in Crimea for Two Months

A court in Ukraine's Mykolaiv has arrested for two months, with the possibility of bail, two Russian servicemen who were detained earlier on the border with Crimea, Hromadske Radio reported citing military prosecutors.

KIEV (Sputnik) — The Russian Defense Ministry on Monday reported that Ukrainian Security Service officers kidnapped two Russian soldiers in Crimea November 20 and took them to Ukraine's Mykolaiv region with an apparent goal to press criminal charges against them. The ministry called the kidnapping a flagrant provocation and demanded their release.

The Russian ministry warned that the Ukrainian authorities could use psychological and physical pressure to force the Russian servicemen to confess their alleged crimes against Ukraine.

According to a Russian Black Sea Fleet source, the Russian servicemen abducted by Ukrainian security operatives in Crimea have been lured under the pretense of providing them with documents confirming obtaining higher education in Ukrainian universities.