Delegation of the European Union to Russia

07/25/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 07/25/2024 04:09

OSCE Permanent Council No.1484 Vienna, 25 July 2024

  1. Over the past two and a half years, we have witnessed a pattern of deliberate Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure. Over the past week alone, this pattern has repeatedly manifested, such as on 19th July, when a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Mykolayiv hit a playground, killing at least four people, including one child. This was followed by another Russian assault on Ukrainian energy infrastructure on 20th July, which resulted in the damage of energy facilities in the Ukrainian regions of Sumy, Chernihiv and Poltava.
  2. Against this backdrop, it is vital that we sustain our efforts in documenting Russia's crimes in Ukraine. We therefore welcome the Fifth Interim ODIHR Report on violations of international humanitarian and international human rights law in Ukraine, published on 22 July. Building on the previous four ODIHR reports, it presents new accounts and testimonies, confirming "the credible evidence that the conduct of the Russian Federation forces is marked by a general disregard for the basic principles set out in IHL". According to the report this has resulted in "a multiplication of rights violations, some of which may amount to war crimes or crimes against humanity". The OSCE Moscow Mechanism and ODIHR reports remain crucial tools in our pursuit of justice and we will continue to make full use of them. Russia should be held accountable for all the crimes it has committed as part of its war of aggression against Ukraine. There must be no impunity, including for the crime of aggression.
  3. The immediate impact of Russia's war of aggression on the lives of millions of Ukrainian civilians has been accompanied by its far-reaching negative repercussions across the Black Sea region, Europe and beyond. An affront to the international rules-based order, this war has severely undermined security and stability not only in its immediate region, but also across the entire world. Economically, Russia's attempted obstruction of freedom of navigation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov and its continuous attacks on Ukraine's grain and port facilities have disrupted grain exports worldwide, aggravating global food insecurity.
  4. The EU Solidarity Lanes, President Zelenskyy's Grain from Ukraine initiative, as well as Ukraine's successful limitation of the operations of Russia's navy in the north-west of the Black Sea have played a significant role in stabilising global food markets, but damage to shipping infrastructure and disruptions in navigation in the Black Sea remain among the main causes for the continuing high levels of food insecurity in 2023, affecting nearly 282 million people in 59 countries across the world. Environmentally, efforts to reduce existing pollution in the Black Sea have been complicated by the severely degraded maritime security environment and pollution, resulting from Russia's war of aggression.
  5. It is only through a shared commitment to upholding a rules-based international order that we can preserve peace and security in the OSCE region and beyond. We welcome the fourth summit of the European Political Community, hosted by the UK on 18th July. It brought together 46 leaders from across the continent, sending a powerful message of unity in addressing common challenges and upholding our security and democratic resilience, particularly in light of Russia's ongoing war of aggression and rising levels of disinformation and foreign information manipulation and interference which are a direct threat to democratic processes. The summit reaffirmed the unwavering and continued support for Ukraine and demonstrated European leaders' strong commitment tothe fundamental rules, principles and norms of international law. We also welcome the meeting that European Council President Charles Michel, along with other European leaders, held with the President of the Republic of Moldova Maia Sandu during the event, which highlighted the broad European support for the security and prosperity of the Republic of Moldova, one of the countries most severely affected by the fallout of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.
  6. We remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to providing continued political, financial, 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.
  7. The path to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace is for the aggressor, Russia, to immediately stop its war of aggression, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its forces and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders, and respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. We urge all countries not to provide material or other support for Russia's war of aggression, which is a blatant violation of international law, including the UN Charter, and the OSCE's core principles and commitments.