Russia kills Ukrainian POWs to intimidate its troops – Ukraine's ombudsman

The killing of Ukrainian prisoners of war is a deliberate tactic by Russia aimed at instilling fear in its soldiers to deter surrender and at undermining the current international legal order, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets told Radio Svoboda.

"Russians do this consciously. Several reasons likely explain it: primarily, to ‘tie’ their soldiers with blood so they fear surrendering, knowing they are war criminals… When they execute Ukrainian POWs, they are told the same will happen to them if they surrender," Lubinets said.

He added that by murdering Ukrainian POWs, Russia seeks to "demonstrate the ineffectiveness of the current system of international humanitarian law."

Lubinets stressed that Russia disregards international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions, aiming to dismantle the existing system and prove its ineffectiveness.

"They want to change this system and likely push their interests during these changes, such as increasing the number of UN Security Council permanent members to include countries supporting Russia. This poses a significant threat to all of us," the ombudsman added.

He said that reports of POW killings are shared with the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations to ensure these crimes are addressed at the highest levels, including at the UN General Assembly, with legal consequences for Russia.

Lubinets suggested introducing targeted sanctions against Russians involved in POW killings.

"I strongly hope that one day international partners will understand that only decisive economic sanctions can stop Russian aggression. This is the only measure that can halt this aggression. Everything else, unfortunately, as we see, isn't working and is only worsening," he said.