On Monday, July 13, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha, while in Brussels, took part in a high-level event dedicated to the EU’s support for Ukraine’s efforts to secure the release of Ukrainian civilians illegally detained by Russia.

The minister reported that, as of now, Ukraine has documented at least 1 878 cases of civilians being unlawfully detained. He also noted that, in reality, this figure is undoubtedly much higher.

Andrii Sybiha noted that Russia has institutionalized the abduction, torture, and unlawful imprisonment of civilians as a deliberate instrument of its war. Thousands of Ukrainians remain in captivity, deprived of their rights, their dignity, and often their very humanity.

The minister presented evidence to those present that torture chambers existed in every major settlement in Ukraine that was under occupation. In liberated Kherson alone, 20 such sites were discovered.

According to the UN, more than 90% of Ukrainian prisoners of war have been subjected to torture or ill-treatment.

“Our people are being beaten, tortured with electric shocks, kept in darkness and prolonged solitary confinement, forced to remain in painful positions, deprived of food, water, and medical care, threatened with the murder of their family members, subjected to mock executions, and subjected to sexual violence”, the Minister said.

The Foreign Minister noted that Crimean Tatars remain one of the largest groups among the unlawfully detained civilians – about 180 people.

The minister highlighted the dire humanitarian situation in Oleshky, Hola Prystan, Zburivka, and Nova Zburivka, where more than 2,000 civilians are struggling to survive without proper access to water, food, and essential medicines.

Ukraine is working with the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross to establish evacuation routes, while Russia is preventing people from leaving the occupied territory.

“I urge you to use all your influence to help secure a humanitarian corridor. For many people there, time may be measured not in days, but in hours”, he emphasized.

Andrii Sybiha specifically drew attention to the issue of Russia’s abduction of Ukrainian children, as well as the illegal detention, for more than four years now, of three former employees of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission: Dmytro Shabanov, Maksym Petrov, and Vadym Golda.

The Minister noted the problem of the lack of an effective mechanism in current humanitarian law that would allow for compelling the aggressor state to release civilians unlawfully detained during wartime.

“The problem lies not only in Russia’s brutality. It also lies in the gaps in international law”, he remarked.

In this regard, he recalled the launch last year of the International Platform for the Progressive Development of International Humanitarian Law. He invited partners to join its work to develop concrete changes that will strengthen international humanitarian law and oversight of its implementation.

The Foreign Minister called for increased international pressure, in particular the imposition of targeted sanctions against all those involved in fabricated cases, as well as against those who run illegal detention centers and torture chambers.

The International Committee of the Red Cross must regain full and unimpeded access to all Ukrainian civilian hostages and prisoners of war. Ukraine expects the capitals of partner states to increase pressure on Moscow to restore the Organization’s ability to carry out its mandate.

Andrii Sybiha also called on his colleagues to establish a binding international mechanism for the protection and return of civilian hostages.

“Their fate cannot be left to the discretion of the aggressor state”, he added.

Equally important is international support for the specialized programs established by Ukraine to provide medical treatment, psychological assistance, and rehabilitation for people returning home.

“Russia seeks to strip our people of their humanity. And it is our shared human duty to prove to Russia that it will not succeed. The release of unlawfully detained civilians must be an integral part of a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace. Our shared responsibility is to bring every civilian home, ensure justice for every victim, and prove that no regime built on terror is stronger than international solidarity and the rule of law”, Andrii Sybiha emphasized.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs expressed his gratitude to the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, and to Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Defense Helen McEntee, for their leadership and for drawing attention to this critically important issue, as well as to Nobel laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk and human rights activist Maksym Butkevych, who participated in the event, for their testimonies. Following the event, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, on behalf of the European Union, and Ukraine adopted a joint statement on civilian hostages and the humanitarian consequences of Russia’s war of aggression.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister thanked the European Union for launching a dedicated platform focused on Ukrainian civilians illegally detained by Russia and for its consistent attention to this issue.

“Europe has the authority and the responsibility to bring our civilians home”, Andrii Sybiha concluded.