Ukraine strongly condemns the brutal war crimes committed by the servicemen of the Russian Federation against Ukrainian prisoners of war, particularly horrible cases of torture, physical abuse, inhuman treatment, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health and wilful killing of Ukrainian prisoners of war.

Wilful killing, torture or inhuman treatment, wilfully causing great suffering or serious injury to body or health of Ukrainian prisoners of war are grave breaches of the Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War and are war crimes under the Criminal Code of Ukraine and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Under the Rome Statute such actions can also be qualified as crimes against humanity.

We call on the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to immediately pay attention to the atrocities of Russian servicemen in the context of the investigation of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by citizens of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine.

All the violations of international law will be properly recorded and documented and will form the basis of appropriate investigations and prosecutions of their perpetrators.

The Russian side is obliged to ensure humane treatment of Ukrainian prisoners of war. Any unlawful act or omission by the Detaining Power causing death or seriously endangering the health of a prisoner of war in its custody is prohibited.

The emergence of information about brutal war crimes committed by the Russian servicemen against Ukrainian prisoners of war coincided with the commission of another war crime by Russia - the shelling of a correctional facility in the occupied Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners of war are believed to be held.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba calls on the international community to condemn the brutal violation of international law by the Russian Federation and to immediately recognize Russia as a terrorist state. He emphasized that any delay in this decision will only encourage Russia to commit further crimes and inhumane acts.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, together with other involved agencies, will continue to make efforts to bring Russian war criminals to the strictest accountability.