Russian Court Sentences Polish Volunteer Captured in Ukraine to 13 Years

A Russian court located in temporarily occupied Luhansk has sentenced Polish citizen Krzysztof Flaczek to 13 years in a high-security prison.

The ruling follows his participation in combat operations on the side of Ukraine during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to Reuters on April 16.

Flaczek joined the Ukrainian forces as a foreign volunteer. He was captured by Russian forces in early 2025 during battles near the town of Chasiv Yar.

Following his disappearance, Flaczek appeared months later in a propaganda video released by the Russian agency Sputnik. The video claimed that the Polish citizen had switched sides to join the Russian military. Such claims are frequently used by Russia for information operations targeting foreign volunteers.

Polish media reports indicate that Flaczek was also featured in content related to the Maxim Kryvonos battalion. This unit, first mentioned in Russian Telegram channels in November 2023, is managed by Russia as a propaganda project involving Ukrainian prisoners of war who supposedly joined the Russian side voluntarily. However, there is no verified information regarding the actual size, structure, or chain of command of this formation within the Russian military.

The Polish consul in Moscow has requested official information from Russian authorities regarding the case. Officials in Warsaw are treating the situation as a matter of consular protection and are focused on the rights of the detained citizen.

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The specific conditions of Flaczek's detention and the circumstances under which he made his public statements remain unknown. There have been numerous documented cases of prisoners of war being used for propaganda purposes throughout Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Russia continues to prosecute foreign volunteers who fight for Ukraine, often classifying them as mercenaries. Flaczek's case serves as another example of how prisoners of war are used in political and media campaigns directed by the Kremlin.

Previously, Russia demanded that Ukrainian Prisoners of War from the Zakarpattia region record propaganda videos praising the aggressor state as a prerequisite for their transfer to Hungary.

Oleksiy Chorpita, a serviceman released from captivity, shared that he had been offered an exchange on the condition of moving to Hungary, but he refused because it required him to speak negatively about Ukrainian authorities while praising Russian detention conditions.

Although Chorpita remained in captivity until 2025, he noted that such videos were typically created under duress to spread Russian propaganda and support its aggression.

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