Executions of Ukrainian prisoners of war have become more frequent: Lubinets explained reasons

Russian occupiers are deliberately killing Ukrainian prisoners of war. This strategy by the Russian Federation is aimed at intimidating their own soldiers and changing the global order.

This was reported by the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, in a commentary to "Radio Svoboda".

"The Russians are doing this deliberately. There are several reasons for this: primarily, it is a way to bind Russian soldiers with blood, so they do not surrender, so they understand they are war criminals. If they destroy Ukrainian prisoners of war, then, if they themselves are captured, they are told that they will be treated in the same way," explained Lubinets.

According to the ombudsman, Russia is trying to demonstrate the ineffectiveness of the existing system of international humanitarian law.

"The Russians have chosen the tactic of destroying the existing international system of humanitarian law, demonstrating that it does not work. It needs to be changed, and in the course of these changes, they will likely promote their interests. For example, increasing the number of permanent members of the UN Security Council by including countries that support the Russian Federation. This is very dangerous for all of us," he emphasized.

Lubinets added that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the UN are discussing cases of the killings of Ukrainian prisoners of war, "so that the issue of the execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war is considered at the highest level in the UN General Assembly, with legal consequences for the Russian Federation."

"Perhaps it is worth introducing separate sanctions lists against Russians involved in this. I strongly wish that, in the future, international partners realize that only radical economic sanctions can stop Russian aggression. This is the only thing that can halt this aggression. Everything else, as you can see, does not work, and the situation is worsening every day," noted the ombudsman.