Ukraine has imposed sanctions against Russian judges who passed illegal sentences on Ukrainian prisoners of war — full list

The President of Ukraine issued a decree adopting a decision by the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) to impose sanctions on Russian judges and to extend expiring sanctions against Russian companies.

Russia’s Southern District Military Court, where illegal trials of Ukrainian prisoners of war are held

The list comprises 41 judges, of whom 38 are Russian citizens, and three are collaborators. All of them issued illegal prison sentences to prisoners of war and continue to support and justify Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Notably, sanctions were applied to a Russian judge who, within a single week, handed down sentences to nine Ukrainian POWs in fabricated terrorism cases.

Furthermore, the sanctions target former Ukrainians in temporarily occupied Donetsk who sentenced three volunteers — two Britons and one Moroccan — to the death penalty. These individuals were defending Ukraine as part of the Armed Forces when they were captured by Russian forces.

The sanctioned judges also include those who issued illegal rulings against public figures, activists, and journalists based on their political and religious beliefs.

“Sanctions against these so-called judges, who rubber-stamp politically motivated sentences for our citizens and soldiers, are a matter of justice. It is especially shameful to see former Ukrainians among them who deliberately became collaborators and turned the court into a tool of repression,” noted Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the Presidential Commissioner for Sanctions Policy.

The sanctioned list consist of: 

• Pavel Bychkov, date of birth: 09.03.1977;
• Aleksandr Nikulin, date of birth: 15.06.1966;
• Elena Kharakhulakh, Elena Revizskaia, date of birth: 17.10.1978;
• Ilia Bezgub, date of birth: 19.05.1987;
• Igor Beldzeiko, date of birth: 26.04.1967;
• Sergei Butusov, date of birth: 08.03.1980;
• Igor Vasilenko, date of birth: 12.07.1979;
• Denis Vovchenko, date of birth: 09.11.1978;
• Pavel Gubarev, date of birth: 04.04.1986;
• Aleksandr Darnitsyn, date of birth: 10.07.1967;
• Igor Degtiarev, date of birth: 09.02.1971;
• Gurgen Dovlatbekian, date of birth: 01.06.1984; 
• Arslan Zhaginov, date of birth: 01.01.1973;
• Andrei Zaria, date of birth: 30.06.1972;
• Mukhamed Kiliarov, date of birth: 01.04.1991;
• Boris Kozhevnikov, date of birth: 31.08.1964;
• Viktor Kostin, date of birth: 10.05.1954;
• Aleksei Koshkorev, date of birth: 12.05.1985;
• Sakit Lachinov, date of birth: 12.09.1971;
• Dmitrii Merkulov, date of birth: 10.06.1973;
• Andrei Minashkin, date of birth: 12.10.1979;
• Maksim Nikitin, date of birth: 14.04.1986;
• Andrei Nogovitsyn, date of birth: 13.07.1978;
• Sergei Obraztsov, date of birth: 13.06.1974;
• Maksim Panin, date of birth: 22.02.1982;
• Valerii Patlan, date of birth: 12.07.1964;
• Aleksandr Peresada, date of birth: 11.11.1973;
• Konstantin Prostov, date of birth: 07.07.1992;
• Mikhail Putilovskii, date of birth: 06.06.1971;
• Vladimir Serebrianskii, date of birth: 10.04.1957;
• Denis Stepanov, date of birth: 15.09.1976;
• Liudmila Tarlavina, date of birth: 20.11.1979;
• Dmitrii Tepliuk, date of birth: 03.02.1972;
• Oleg Terentev, date of birth: 01.10.1988;
• Vadim Togubitskii, date of birth: 11.03.1972;
• Marina Ushakova, date of birth: 02.05.1979;
• Vladimir Tsybulnik, date of birth: 12.06.1965;
• Oleg Cherepov, date of birth: 16.07.1989;
• Artem Shalaev, date of birth: 12.03.1989;
• Igor Shendrikov, date of birth: 20.02.1960;
• Magomedbasir Shuaipov, date of birth: 23.12.1962.

The President also signed a decree extending expiring sanctions against 11 Russian companies. These entities were first sanctioned in 2021 and 2023. In the intervening time, three companies on that list have been completely liquidated.

The specified sanctions package includes:

• An enterprise for the repair and maintenance of aviation equipment;
• A company specializing in the development and manufacturing of drones;
• Companies operating illegally in temporarily occupied Crimea and involved in the construction of the Kerch Bridge.

Ukraine will share all necessary information with its partners to facilitate further synchronization of these sanctions across their jurisdictions.

For reference, according to the Geneva Conventions, POWs cannot be prosecuted for their participation in military operations. However, the Russian Federation disregards these norms and puts Ukrainian soldiers on trial, for instance, for their participation in the operation in the Kursk region.

On March 9, 2026, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine said in its latest report to the Human Rights Council that it further investigated the conduct of trials by courts in the Russian Federation and in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine. During the trials, Russian authorities systematically presented evidence that was coerced by the use of torture.

Civilians and prisoners of war were deprived of fundamental fair trial guarantees, as the guilt of the accused was presumed from the outset, demonstrating the lack of independence and impartiality of the courts. The Commission found that the Russian authorities committed grave breaches of international humanitarian law, which constitute war crimes.