New hope for Oscar Jenkins’ release in future prison swap

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Australia has revealed how Melbourne man Oscar Jenkins could be released after being captured by Russian forces in Ukraine.

Exclusive: A prisoner swap to secure the release of Oscar Jenkins, who is being held captive by Russia, will be possible thanks to the Australian man enlisting in the Ukrainian defence forces rather than fighting as an independent mercenary, officials say.

But family and friends of the 32-year-old teacher are being warned the process to negotiate his return will be “lengthy” with no clear timeline, as the Ukrainian government vows it is “committed” to freeing Mr Jenkins.

Australian officials have confirmed Mr Jenkins, who was seen with his hands bound being taunted and hit by a Russian soldier in a video that went viral on the social media platform Telegram earlier this week, is covered by the Third Geneva Convention protecting prisoners of war as he was formally enlisted in the Ukrainian military when captured.

Had Mr Jenkins joined the war effort as a mercenary, he would not be recognised as a legitimate combatant and therefore not have the international legal protections that Australia and Ukraine now hope to use to secure his release.

Australian man Oscar Jenkins was captured by Russian forces in Ukraine. Picture: Screengrab

In an exclusive interview Ukraine’s Ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko said this important distinction meant Russians “should abide by the international humanitarian law” in Mr Jenkins’ case, though he cautioned that throughout the war Moscow “doesn’t really adhere that much” to such requirements.

“That’s a reality that we are seeing, because we have many of the Ukrainian prisoners of war return from captivity and some of the stories they are sharing are really mind boggling, what they have to go through,” he said.

Mr Myroshnychenko said Mr Jenkins’ release would be a “lengthy process,” but his prisoner of war status meant there was a “kind of light at the end of the tunnel”.

Oscar Jenkins before he went to Ukraine. Picture: Supplied

“The Ukrainian government is determined to get him released,” he said.

“It will be a drawn out process, it’s not going to happen quick, but we are committed to getting him released.”

Mr Myroshnychenko said Ukraine would “closely co-ordinate” with the Australian Government regarding Mr Jenkins, whom officials are still trying to locate and confirm his wellbeing.

A rescuer of the State Emergency Service works to put out a fire in a private house after a drone strike in Kharkiv, on December 25, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Picture: AFP

The ambassador said there was a well established “track” on the exchange of prisoners of war between Ukraine and Russia, with multiple options for negotiations.

“Oscar Jenkins as a member of the Ukrainian defence forces, we had information that he was missing and then that video now that we know he’s alive and so we understand he’s a prisoner of war, he gets on the list of those in Russian captivity and then there’s lengthy negotiations, which are happening,” Mr Myroshnychenko said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky presenting an Order to a serviceman during a ceremony in Kyiv, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine this week. Picture: AFP

Prisoners swaps between Russia and Ukraine have happened regularly since the war started in 2022, with some exchanges negotiated directly and others through intermediaries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Mr Myroshnychenko confirmed Mr Jenkins’ status as a foreign national “does” complicate the process, and now his case was in the public domain it was unclear what Russia might want in exchange for him.

Australian man Oscar Jenkins is being held but there is hope he will return home one day. Picture: Screengrab

“There will be separate tracks, and there’s one which is going to be done on the Ukrainian side, and Australia will have its own track with Russia on this issue,” he said.

As an official prisoner of war, the federal government will not have the same kind of consular access afforded to other Australians detained overseas, however it can petition third parties, like the International Committee of the Red Cross, to assess the conditions Mr Jenkins is subjected to.

Mr Myroshnychenko said so far the Red Cross had been getting “some access” in Russia or occupied Ukrainian territories to “observe” and “make sure both sides are adhering to the Geneva Convention on the customs of war”.

Firefighters pushing out a fire after a shell explosion in a residential building from a Russian shelling in Bilozerka village, Kherson region, amid Russian invasion in Ukraine. Picture: AFP

“But we know that Russians have been often reluctant to provide access, whereas Ukraine has opened up all the access to tall the prisoners of war that we have in Ukraine,” he said.

The ambassador said prisoners of war were scattered in different locations and moved to different places either inside Russia or in occupied Ukraine “on a regular basis”.

“That’s a problem with (observing) Russia we are having,” he said.

Mr Myroshnychenko said he wanted to personally express his sympathy to Mr Jenkins’ family, and in particular his mother.

“I can understand how difficult this is for her, you know watching that (video) and thinking about your son,” he said.

“This is extremely distressing, and I can really feel her pain.”

On Friday a government spokeswoman said Australia had made its expectations “clear” to Russia - that it “must comply with international legal obligations and ensure Mr Jenkins’ welfare”.

The circumstances are extremely challenging, but the Australian Government is working closely with the Government of Ukraine and appropriate organisations, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, to confirm Mr Jenkins’ whereabouts and support him and his family,” she said.

Originally published as New hope for Oscar Jenkins’ release in future prison swap