Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says gov’t working to confirm report that volunteer struggle was killed by Russian forces.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has pledged to take the “strongest potential motion” in opposition to Russia whether it is confirmed that Russian forces killed a Melbourne faculty instructor of their captivity in Ukraine.
Albanese made the remarks on Wednesday after Seven Information reported that Oscar Jenkins, who volunteered to struggle with Ukrainian forces, was believed to have been killed.
Australia’s Division of International Affairs and Commerce has mentioned it has not verified the report, which cited unnamed sources in Ukraine, however officers have “grave considerations” for Jenkins’ welfare.
“We name upon Russia to instantly verify Oscar Jenkins’s standing, we stay gravely involved,” Albanese instructed reporters in Tasmania.
“We’ll await the information to return out. But when there was any hurt precipitated to Oscar Jenkins, that’s completely reprehensible and the Australian authorities will take the strongest motion potential.”
Australian Minister for International Affairs Penny Wong mentioned earlier that officers have been making “pressing enquiries” about Jenkins and “all choices” have been being thought-about when it comes to a diplomatic response, together with the potential expulsion of the Russian ambassador.
“My ideas are with Mr Jenkins’s household. They’ve lived with the worry and uncertainty of a beloved one in the midst of a international warfare for a lot of months. I do know these experiences shall be devastating to them, and they’re in my ideas, and I’m positive the ideas of many Australians,” Wong instructed ABC Radio.
Wong mentioned that Australia had had a “tough relationship” with Russia for a few years, citing Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the downing of Malaysian Airways flight MH17 by a Russian-made missile in 2014 with the lack of 298 folks, together with 38 Australians.
“We’ve maintained, Australia has maintained diplomatic relations with Russia via that interval below completely different governments. Nonetheless, we’ll contemplate all choices as soon as we’ve got ascertained the information and as soon as we will confirm what has truly occurred right here with Mr Jenkins,” Wong mentioned.
Video that circulated on social media final month confirmed Jenkins wearing fight uniform whereas being interrogated and hit throughout the top by an unseen man talking Russian.
The 32-year-old is believed to be the primary Australian held as a prisoner of warfare by Russian forces in Ukraine.
Not together with Jenkins, at the least six Australians are believed to have been killed in Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion.
If his loss of life is confirmed, Jenkins can be the primary Australian prisoner of warfare killed by a international energy since Horace William “Slim” Madden died in captivity in North Korea in 1951.
