Accompanied by armed security forces, Selenskyj had an idea of the destruction. Asked by a reporter whether it was still possible to negotiate peace with Russia, the Ukrainian head of state replied in the affirmative: “Ukraine must have peace,” he said.
At the same time, he stressed that an early success in the negotiations was in Russia’s interest: “The longer the Russian Federation postpones negotiations, the worse it will be for them.” ” to continue conversations now
Russia talks about “staging”
Photos of residents of the city near Kiev, whose bodies lay on the streets after the withdrawal of Russian troops, have been causing horror around the world since the weekend. The Ukrainian side blames Russian soldiers for the crimes. Selenskyj had already spoken of “genocide” on Sunday. Moscow, on the other hand, vehemently denies responsibility for the civilian deaths. The facts and timing of events do not match the Ukrainian account, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke of a staging by Ukraine to harm Russia.
debate
War in Ukraine: What are the consequences of crimes against civilians?
US President Joe Biden has called for a “war crimes trial” and announced new sanctions against Russia. On Monday, Biden again described Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “war criminal” and the events in Bucha as “war crimes” that should result in a “war crimes trial”. But first, additional information would have to be collected.
EU wants to send investigation teams
The EU wants to send investigative teams to Ukraine to investigate alleged Russian war crimes. As European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced Monday after a phone call with Selenskyj, EU judicial authority Eurojust and law enforcement agency Europol are ready to provide support.
As a result, the work of an already agreed joint investigation team could be strengthened. This is to collect evidence and solve war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Von der Leyen was shocked by the atrocities reported in the liberated Ukrainian cities. “These horrible images should not and will not go unnoticed,” she said. “The authors of these heinous crimes must not go unpunished.”
France and UK for tougher sanctions
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for tougher punitive measures against Russia, as did British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. This time, one should also target oil and coal from Russia, Macron said. Japan and the German federal government have also committed to new measures.
However, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck continued to reject an immediate energy embargo against Russia. Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) also spoke out against a Russian gas embargo in the lunchtime newspaper Ö1 on Monday. “We’ve always said, when it comes to sanctions, that they should hit those who are targeted and not a boomerang against us,” Schallenberg said. That would be the case for gas deliveries.
Brunner: I agree with Germany
Austria is 100 percent on Germany’s side on this issue, Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) said ahead of a Eurogroup meeting on Monday in Luxembourg. According to Brunner, sanctions only make sense if they don’t affect you more than the person who should be affected. You have to keep a cool head, especially in a gas embargo. The medium-term goal is to become more independent. “But it would be unrealistic to say that we could change overnight.” Instead, Brunner suggested expanding the list of sanctioned individuals and organizations.
According to its vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis, the European Commission is not ruling out an embargo on Russian energy imports. “As far as the European Commission is concerned, nothing is off the table,” Dombrovskis said on the sidelines of the Eurogroup meeting. The Commission is already working on the next sanctions package and he hopes that member states can agree on the next ambitious steps on sanctions, the Latvian politician said. “It is clear that we as the European Union must do more to stop this war and these atrocities.”
Pity as a solution?
An analysis by the Conseil d’Analyse Economique, which reports to the French head of government’s office, came to the conclusion that a perceptible EU-wide tariff on Russian energy imports would be more effective than an outright ban on imports. A 40 percent fine tariff would reduce import volumes by about 80 percent, the statement published on Monday said. The remaining 20% would go to countries most dependent on Russian supplies. Aside from Austria, which gets 80% of its gas from Russia, this includes EU heavyweight Germany.
Poland criticizes Germany
Poland has again accused the German government of blocking tougher punitive measures against Russia. Germany is the main obstacle to stricter measures, Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in Warsaw. Poland itself wants to stop importing Russian gas at the end of the year.
Russia requested a special session of the UN Security Council on Monday, which was rejected by the United Kingdom as chairman of the council. Instead, the Security Council is expected to advise on Tuesday.
Bucha: Investigations after the withdrawal from Russia
According to Ukrainian authorities, more than 400 bodies were recovered after Russian troops withdrew from Bucha, a suburb of the Ukrainian capital Kiev. Ukraine accuses Russia of war crimes. The investigation is ongoing. Moscow denies the allegations.
The US wants to suspend Russia’s participation in the United Nations Human Rights Council. US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield announced that a corresponding request would be made to the UN General Assembly. Russia is currently in its second year of three-year rotating participation on the Geneva panel. With a two-thirds majority, the General Assembly, with its 193 states, can suspend a country’s membership for serious human rights violations.
diplomatic action
EU countries are reacting to the massacre in the Kiev suburb of Bucha with diplomatic measures. Lithuania was the first member country to declare the Russian ambassador there undesirable. In addition, the decision was made to send the Lithuanian ambassador to Ukraine back to Kiev, Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said on Twitter. Estonia has summoned the Russian ambassador. Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) will summon Russian Ambassador to Austria Dmitrij Ljubinskij to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as he announced in a preliminary report to Oe24.tv.
The German government declared 40 Russian diplomats “undesirable people” in Germany. The federal government decided on Monday “to declare a significant number of members of the Russian embassy as undesirable people who worked here in Germany every day against our freedom, against the cohesion of our society,” Foreign Minister Annalena said. Baerbock (Greens) in Berlin. “We will no longer tolerate this.” If diplomats are declared to be undesirable people, it amounts to expulsion.
UN calls for investigation
Meanwhile, the human rights organization Human Rights Watch said it had documented several cases of war crimes committed by the Russian army. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet called for independent investigations into possible war crimes against civilians in Bucha. “Everything must be done to secure evidence,” the high commissioner said on Monday in Geneva. All bodies must be exhumed, identified and examined. Reports from Bucha and other areas raise “serious and disturbing questions about possible war crimes” and other rights violations, Bachelet said.