To all intents and purposes, the Russians now hold two British hostages in all but name.
Hostage negotiations with rogue states, such as Russia and its puppet ally the Donetsk People’s Republic, are never easy, but Liz Truss faces unusually severe obstacles in trying to secure the release of Aiden Aslin and Shaun Pinner.
The foreign secretary has a month before the death sentence handed to them by a kangaroo court is due to be carried out, though of course they can be granted temporary “reprieves” at the whim of Russian president Vladimir Putin. Ms Truss will soon be faced with the most serious challenge of her career, and she knows full well how sadistically the Russians will toy with their prisoners’ lives, and how hard a bargain they will try to secure.
