The EU has condemned what it called one of Russia’s largest missile attacks on Kyiv since the start of the full-scale invasion, saying the strike used an “unprecedented concentration” of ballistic and hypersonic missiles, in a statement at the OSCE Forum for Security Co-operation in Vienna.
The statement, dated 22 July, said the attack took place overnight on 18 – 19 July and described Russia’s actions as an illegal war of aggression that violates international law, including the UN Charter, the European External Action Service (EEAS) announced.
The EU also reiterated its call for “full accountability” for international crimes and other violations of international law linked to the war.
New UN figures cited in the statement said the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine confirmed executions of 129 Ukrainian prisoners of war since the start of the full-scale invasion almost four and a half years ago, adding that the actual number was likely higher.
It said UN reporting found that 96% of 853 Ukrainian prisoners of war interviewed reported torture or ill-treatment during captivity and interrogations, with the UN mission concluding the abuse was systematic.
Examples listed included sexual violence, severe beatings, suffocation and mock executions.
The statement said the UN attributed 48 deaths in custody to torture, ill-treatment and a lack of adequate medical assistance, while independent international monitors still have no or severely restricted access to prisoners.
The International Committee of the Red Cross should be able to carry out its mandate and access all places where prisoners of war and civilian detainees are held.
Sanctions and calls to withdraw
The EU noted that it imposed sanctions last week on 15 individuals and one entity it described as responsible for serious human rights violations against Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilian detainees, including in temporarily occupied regions of Ukraine and in Russia.
The bloc repeated its call for Russia to “immediately, completely and unconditionally” withdraw forces and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders.
It also urged countries to stop assisting Russia’s war effort, including via dual-use goods — civilian items that can also have military applications — and criticised the deployment of North Korean troops as well as military support it said was being provided by Belarus, Iran and North Korea.
The EU raised “latest incidents” in the Black Sea, including in Romania’s exclusive economic zone, and called for freedom of navigation and respect for the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway and Ukraine aligned themselves with the EU statement.
