Ukraine's UN representative informs UN about recent execution of unarmed Ukrainian POWs by Russians
Sergiy Kyslytsya (Photo - UN press service)

During the UN meeting on December 6, the representative of Ukraine at the United Nations, Sergiy Kyslytsya, spoke about the war crimes of the Russians, in particular the recent execution of unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war by the occupiers.

Explaining complex things in simple terms – subscribe to our YouTube channel

"Since the beginning of the large-scale invasion, we have documented more than 114 000 cases of violations of the laws and customs of war on the territory of Ukraine by the aggressor country. The number of casualties is growing every day, adding new infamous pages to the shameful history of Russian aggression against Ukraine," Kyslytsya said.

In particular, he said that on December 2, a video was posted online showing Russian troops killing two Ukrainian soldiers immediately after they surrendered.

"Trapped and out of ammunition, these Ukrainian soldiers were unarmed and clearly signaling their intention to surrender. Despite this, they were shot dead by the Russian occupiers, who have never considered themselves bound by the Geneva Conventions," said Ukraine's representative to the UN.

He emphasized that the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the authenticity of the video shot by a drone near the village of Stepove, Donetsk region, and the prosecutor's office opened proceedings on the violation of the rules and customs of war.

"This is not the first execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war, and we have already drawn the attention of the Security Council to other heinous crimes, including the killing of captured Ukrainian military after brutal and inhuman torture," Kyslytsya said.

He also recalled the Russian massacre of Ukrainian prisoners of war in Olenivka in July 2022. He emphasized that it took the UN more than a year to finally expose Russia's lies about this war crime. The Russians tried to shift the responsibility for the strike to Ukraine, claiming that it was allegedly a HIMARS flight.

"As the next anniversary of Russian aggression and full-scale invasion of Ukraine approaches, there is less doubt that its ultimate goal is the destruction of the Ukrainian state and the Ukrainian nation," Kyslytsia said.

On December 2, it became known that the Russian invaders executed two unarmed Ukrainian prisoners of war.

On December 4, Ukrainian Armed Forces spokesman Stupun announced the elimination of the Russian occupiers who shot Ukrainian prisoners of war near Avdiivka. At the same time, DIU representative Yusov said that intelligence could not yet confirm the destruction of these particular occupiers.