The head of the ICRC Mission in Ukraine, Juan-Pedro Scherer, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs due to an incorrect statement by one of the organization's regional directors, which equates the responsibility of the Russian Federation as an aggressor state and Ukraine, which defends itself and its people, for human suffering, UNN reports.
Details
As reported by the diplomatic agency, on January 20, during the meeting, the Ukrainian side expressed deep disappointment with the statement of the ICRC Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia dated January 14, 2026, which, in fact, equates the responsibility of the Russian Federation as an aggressor state and Ukraine, which defends itself and its people, for human suffering.
The Ukrainian side emphasized that, unlike the Russian aggressor, Ukraine strikes exclusively at legitimate military targets of the enemy within the framework of exercising its inherent right to self-defense in accordance with the UN Charter. In this context, any attempts to identify, equate, or draw false parallels between Ukraine and Russia are immoral, erroneous, and absolutely unacceptable
In Ukraine, as noted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they expect the Committee to be more persistent in its efforts aimed at ensuring unhindered access to Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians illegally detained, as well as in relevant public communication.
For their part, ICRC representatives acknowledged the inappropriateness of such attempts to equate responsibility and agreed on the need to improve the Committee's communication approaches in the future. Juan-Pedro Scherer also noted that he and his colleagues in Kyiv well understand the real humanitarian situation and experience the consequences of Russian attacks firsthand
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs added that the parties agreed to promote further strengthening of bilateral dialogue, including through visits, to ensure a deeper understanding by the ICRC of the current humanitarian crisis in Ukraine caused by Russian attacks, and also discussed ways to strengthen ICRC efforts to gain access to Ukrainian prisoners of war and detained civilians.
Context
On the official ICRC page, a statement appeared from the organization's regional director for Europe and Central Asia, Arian Bauer, which refers to strikes "on critical infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia."
In addition, Bauer notes that "attacks that cause disproportionate harm to civilians, including depriving them of access to essential services such as electricity and heating, which are necessary for survival now, are prohibited."
In turn, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha called shameful the statement of the International Committee of the Red Cross regarding "strikes on critical infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia," and also added that the head of the ICRC delegation to Ukraine would be summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine for explanations