Kostin on executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war: it is a deliberate policy of the Russian Federation
Kyiv • UNN
Prosecutor General Kostin announced an increase in the number of executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war. According to him, these are not isolated cases, but an organized policy of the Russian Federation, confirmed by an audio recording of an order from a Russian officer.
Over the past year, the number of executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war by the occupiers has increased. These crimes are not isolated incidents, but a deliberate policy of the Russian Federation. The Prosecutor General's Office has an audio recording of a Russian officer ordering his troops not to take prisoners on the battlefield but to kill Ukrainians. This was announced by Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin in an interview with the Belgian media outlet La Libre, UNN reports with reference to the OGP.
Kostin noted that most Russian war criminals have been convicted in absentia by Ukrainian courts, but the court's verdict is fundamental to the process of restoring justice and healing the victims.
Investigating war crimes in times of conflict is, of course, extremely difficult. We document, investigate and prosecute every crime committed by the aggressor in national courts. But our task goes much further. We are implementing a methodology for prosecuting more specific crimes, such as sexual violence, crimes against children and environmental crimes
The Prosecutor General added that over the past year, the number of executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war by the occupiers has increased. Torture and summary executions are used as a weapon of war, intimidation and destruction.
"We can prove that these cases are not isolated incidents, but an organized and targeted policy. For example, we have an audio recording of a Russian officer ordering his troops not to take prisoners on the battlefield but to kill Ukrainians," Kostin said.
According to Kostin, one of the key tasks for justice is to hold Russia and its leadership accountable for the crime of aggression, without which more than 140,000 war crimes would not have occurred.
It is important to bring to justice the masterminds of this invasion - the president, the prime minister, the members of the so-called "troika" - and show them that they can be held accountable, despite the gaps in international law. The ICC does not have jurisdiction in this matter, but we are working on a legal formula with about 40 states around the world
Therefore, Kostin emphasized that if Putin dares to attend the G20 meeting in Brazil, he should be arrested.
"The refusal to execute the arrest warrant strengthens Russia's position. All our hopes now rest on the independence of the Brazilian judiciary," the Prosecutor General said.
Addendum
On October 4, the OGP reported that Russians executed 93 Ukrainian soldiers on the battlefield, 80% of these executions took place this year.
DeepState reported that on October 10, Russians shot nine Ukrainian soldiers in the Kursk region.
