2024 Warsaw Human Dimension Conference Warsaw, 30 September - 11 October 2024

1. The Russian Federation has been waging a war of aggression against Ukraine for over thirty months. Over thirty months we have been witnessing immense human suffering and massive destruction in Ukraine. The EU and its Member States have condemned, from the very beginning, in the strongest possible terms, Russia's unprovoked, unjustifiable and illegal war of aggression against Ukraine.

2. We remain gravely concerned regarding the ongoing human rights and humanitarian impact of the war. With its ruthless assault on Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure, Russia is disregarding its obligations under IHL and the fundamental principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution.

3. OHCHR has recently released its latest update on the protection of civilians in Ukraine, confirming that over 1000 civilians were killed or injured in August alone. From the beginning of the war, the figures are terrifying: over 35.000 civilian casualties. Of them, over 2.000 were children. The actual figure is likely to be significantly higher.

4. By recently intensifying the large-scale attacks on Ukrainian cities, the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects in densely populated areas, with attacks on hospitals, such as the largest children's hospital in Ukraine, critical energy infrastructure or on humanitarian aid convoys, Russia has escalated its violations of IHL.

5. We remind Russia that attacks directed against civilians and civilian objects, as well as indiscriminate attacks, are clear violations of IHL and constitute war crimes.

6. The EU and its Member States support all efforts to gather evidence and document the atrocities of the war inflicted by Russia, including by the ICC, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, the UN Commission of Inquiry and the OSCE, through the Moscow Mechanism and other tools. We also commend the tireless efforts of civil society who often act as first responders, providing support services and gathering evidence to support future accountability.

7. Tragically, the OSCE Moscow Mechanism reports, ODIHR interim reports, as well as those from the independent UN Commission of inquiry have documented serious violations of IHL and IHRL in Ukraine, committed by Russia, many amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. These include indiscriminate attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, a widespread and systematic pattern of summary executions, arbitrary deprivation of liberty and enforced disappearances, torture, ill-treatment and inhumane detention conditions, rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence, forced transfer and unlawful deportation, including of children, as well as mistreatment of prisoners of war. Thousands of Ukrainian civilians have been subject to "filtration" operations characterized by ill-treatment and extremely poor conditions of detention.

8. Abiding by IHL is not optional. Each case must be properly investigated and prosecuted with a victim-centered and trauma sensitive approach.

9. There can be no impunity for war crimes, crimes against humanity and other crimes committed in the context of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, including the crime of aggression. All those responsible must and will be held accountable. The EU will spare no effort until justice prevails.

10. We will continue to demand the immediate release by Russia of all individuals unlawfully deprived of their liberty, including the three arbitrarily detained OSCE staff members - Vadym Golda, Maxim Petrov and Dmytro Shabanov, and we fully support all OSCE and the Chairperson's efforts in this regard.

11. The EU reaffirms its unwavering commitment to providing continued political, economic, humanitarian, legal, military and diplomatic support to Ukraine and its people for as long as it takes and as intensely as needed, also taking into account the critical importance of accelerated and intensified deliveries of military material based on Ukraine's urgent needs.

The Candidate Countries NORTH MACEDONIA*, MONTENEGRO*, ALBANIA*, UKRAINE, the REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA, BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA*, and GEORGIA, and the EFTA countries ICELAND, LIECHTENSTEIN and NORWAY, members of the European Economic Area, as well as ANDORRA align themselves with this statement.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.

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