{"id":26575,"date":"2023-12-19T18:40:03","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:40:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/berkshiredoulas.com\/?p=26575"},"modified":"2023-12-19T18:40:03","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T18:40:03","slug":"vladimir-putins-puppet-turns-on-russian-tyrant-as-he-agrees-to-testify","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/berkshiredoulas.com\/world-news\/vladimir-putins-puppet-turns-on-russian-tyrant-as-he-agrees-to-testify\/","title":{"rendered":"Vladimir Putins puppet turns on Russian tyrant as he agrees to testify"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

One of Vladimir Putin’s most significant officers has vowed to testify against the Russian president.<\/p>\n

Igor Salikov is a former colonel of the Russian Defense Ministry’s military intelligence service (GRU), who also previously worked a senior instructor within the Wagner Group.<\/p>\n

The former Redut commander, according to Dutch public broadcaster NPO1, has opted to testify about Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.<\/p>\n

Reports say Salikov witnessed “false flag operations” in Donbas and “atrocities against civilians” including the torture and execution of prisoners of war.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: <\/strong> Ukraine poised to drive Russia out as Putin’s forces ‘struggle in Black Sea’<\/strong><\/p>\n

Other crimes he claims to have seen included the kidnapping of children who were “transported across the border to Belarus”.<\/p>\n

Salikov left Russia alongside his family in June 2022, flying to South Africa’s Cape Town and then on to the Netherlands. He now intends to seek political asylum.<\/p>\n

During an interview with the Dutch broadcaster, the 60-year-old said: “I have seen people from the secret services take large numbers of children without parents across the border into Belarus.”<\/p>\n

Don’t miss… <\/strong>
North Korea in desperate bid for Russian tourists lavish ski resort nearly empty[LATEST] <\/strong>
Russia attempting to destroy every civilian building in Ukrainian city Avdiivka[REVEAL] <\/strong>
New declassified dossiers show several countries tried to meddle in US midterms[INSIGHT] <\/strong><\/p>\n

POLITICO reported that Salikov said the alleged war crimes were carried out on the orders of the Ministry – as well as coming directly from Putin’s offices.<\/p>\n

Back in March an arrest warrant was issued for Putin by the ICC over the claims regarding the transfer of children to Russia after the country invaded Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Kyiv and other European and Western allies have continued to push for a tribunal in order to investigate Russia’s “crimes of aggression” during the war.<\/p>\n

According to Salikov, he left Russia after refusing to carry out an order to execute civilians and that he had “lost faith in the Russian cause”.<\/p>\n