Recently, after regaining control of the Kyiv region from the Russian army, the Ukrainian side released a series of pictures and videos of the deaths of civilians in the city of Butcha, Kyiv Oblast, and accused the Russian army of killing these civilians. Russia denied this on the 3rd, saying that not a single civilian was killed by any form of violence during the Russian occupation of Butcha.
On the same day, Germany said Western allies would agree to more sanctions on Russia in the coming days to “make Putin and his supporters feel the consequences of their actions”.
The following is the response of some international organizations and national leaders to the killing of civilians in Butcha:
United Nations
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on the 3rd that he was “deeply shocked” by the images of the killing of civilians in Butcha and called for an independent investigation into the incident. “I am deeply appalled by the images of the killing of civilians in Buccha, Ukraine. It is critical that an independent investigation be conducted to achieve effective accountability,” he tweeted on the social media platform.
EU
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted on the 3rd: “(I) am shocked by reports of unspeakable terror in areas evacuated by Russia. An independent investigation is urgently needed. “The perpetrators of war crimes will be held accountable,” she added.
European Parliament President Roberta Metsola visited Kyiv on the 1st, becoming the first EU institution leader to visit Ukraine since the war between Russia and Ukraine. She said images from Butcha and other liberated areas of Ukraine revealed “the harsh reality of Putin’s (committed) war crimes”.
Messora stressed that the world must “understand” what happened in Ukraine, that “tougher sanctions must be imposed on Russia” in retaliation, and that “the perpetrators and their commanders must be brought to justice”.
Left: Von der Leyen Right: Messora
U.K
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on the 3rd accused the Russian army of “appalling behavior” in Butcha and Irpin, a suburb of Kyiv, and demanded that it be investigated as a war crime.
“As Russian troops are forced to retreat, we are seeing growing evidence of appalling conduct by invading forces in towns such as Irpin and Butcha,” Truss said in a statement. Their indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians during the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine must be investigated as war crimes.”
She stressed that Russia should not be allowed to “cover up their involvement in these atrocities through selfish disinformation”, adding that the UK would play its part in ensuring this did not happen.
Truss pledged that the UK would fully support “any investigation undertaken by the International Criminal Court as the principal body charged with investigating and prosecuting war crimes”. On March 24, the UK provided the International Criminal Court with £1m in additional funding to assist in an investigation into Russian war crimes.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson issued a statement on the same day condemning the killing of Ukrainian civilians.
“Russia’s vile attack on innocent civilians in Irpin and Butcha is yet another proof that Putin and his army are committing war crimes in Ukraine,” he said in a statement.
“No Kremlin denial or disinformation can hide what we all know – Putin is desperate, his invasion is failing, and Ukraine’s resolve has never been stronger.”
“I will do everything I can to weaken Putin’s war machine. We are stepping up our sanctions, military support and humanitarian support programs to help those in need on the ground.”
Germany
German Chancellor Scholz described the images of the killing of civilians in Butcha as “horrific and horrific” and said the perpetrators must be held accountable.
“We must tirelessly investigate these crimes committed by the Russian military,” Scholz said. “I demand that international organizations such as the ICRC be allowed access to these areas so that they can independently document these atrocities. The perpetrators and those who ordered them must be were unanimously held accountable.”
Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called the images from Butcha “unbearable”.
Bell Burke wrote on Twitter on the 3rd that “Putin’s uncontrolled violence wipes out innocent families with no bottom line” and called for those who committed “war crimes” to be held accountable. “We will strengthen sanctions against Russia and will be more supportive of Ukraine’s defense.”
German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht said in an interview with the media on the same day that the EU should discuss banning the import of Russian natural gas.
Left: Bell Burke Right: Scholz
France
French President Emmanuel Macron also said the images from Boucha were “unbearable”. Macron tweeted that images from the liberated city of Butcha near Kyiv were unbearable, where hundreds of civilians were killed in the streets. “My sympathy for the victims and my support for the Ukrainians.”
“The Russian authorities will have to be held accountable for these crimes,” he added.
French Foreign Minister Le Drian (Jean-Yves Le Drian) called in a statement on the 3rd that the strongest economic and international pressure must be exerted on Russia to force the Russian authorities to end “their campaign against Ukraine on February 24.” The war of aggression”, “The human cost and humanitarian impact of this war is increasing every day”.
Italy
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi on the 3rd condemned Russia’s alleged violence against civilians in Boucha. “We are appalled by images of crimes committed by (Russian forces) in Butcha and other areas liberated by Ukrainian forces,” he said in a statement through his press office.
He added: “The brutality of the massacre of unarmed civilians is horrific and unbearable. The Russian authorities must immediately cease hostilities and violence against civilians and must be held accountable for what happened.”
Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said the wave of anger over the Butcha incident would lead to a new round of sanctions, and did not rule out that “in the next few hours, there could be an increase in the importation of hydrocarbons from Russia. issue debate.”
(Compile: Zhou Zhou)
Further reading: Attorney General of Ukraine: 410 civilian bodies found after the capital Kyiv region was “liberated”
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