Translated with AI
Even at the beginning of the Russian aggression against Ukraine in 2014, we were surprised by the manifestations of inhumanity on the part of the occupiers.
Let me remind you of just a few examples for which there is no logical explanation: the shelling of a passenger bus near Volnovakha from a Grad rocket artillery installation in January 2015 – 12 people died, a few days later the shelling of residential areas of Mariupol with the same Grad – more than 30 people died, the shelling of the Donetskgormash transport stop in occupied Donetsk from a mortar – 15 people died, the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission concluded: contrary to the statements of propagandists, this could not have been carried out by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
With the full-scale Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, the destruction and abuse of civilians took on the large-scale character of genocide against the Ukrainian people.
This is the "massacre" in Bucha, which has gained worldwide fame – in fact, Bucha has become a symbol of Russian terror, from which every occupied settlement in Ukraine suffers. We can only guess how many residents have become victims or suffered in Mariupol, Volnovakha, Vovchansk and other cities. In the de-occupied territories, we found special torture chambers, many residents simply disappeared.
These include daily air strikes on Ukrainian cities. Frontline settlements are subjected to devastating bombings and artillery strikes, including Zaporizhia and Kherson.
In June, a significant increase in the number of attacks on cities and a change in enemy tactics were recorded.
So, if earlier several dozen drones and missiles were used throughout the territory of Ukraine per night, now 500-700 or more weapons are aimed mainly at several populated areas.
Moreover, more than half of the missiles and drones hit civilian infrastructure objects – residential buildings, electrical substations, hospitals, shops, hotels.
On the night of June 17, Russia attacked Ukraine using more than 440 drones and 32 missiles of various types. The main blow fell on the cities of Kyiv, Odessa, and Zaporozhye. At the same time, missiles with cluster warheads were used, which increases the casualty rate and is unacceptable for use in populated areas. More than 30 people were killed, about 140 were injured and traumatized.
On June 23, Russian occupation forces again attacked Ukraine using 352 attack UAVs and 16 missiles. The main direction of the strikes was Kyiv – 9 people were killed. On the same day, two ballistic missiles hit a lyceum in the city of Belgorod-Dnistrovsky in the Odessa region – 2 people were killed.
On June 24, Russia's main attack was directed against the cities of Dnepr and Samara, where more than 20 people were killed and about 340 were injured.
On the morning of June 29, Russian troops launched a massive attack, launching 477 drones and about 60 missiles at Kyiv, Dnieper, Lviv, Odessa, and Poltava.
On the night of July 4 – 539 drones and 11 missiles, mainly at Kyiv.
On July 9, Russia attacked mainly Lutsk, Zhitomir and other cities, using 728 UAVs and 13 missiles.
On July 10, Kyiv again became the center of large-scale night terror – the city was in smoke.
Each time there are new tragedies, victims and wounded among civilians, destroyed housing.
The occupiers are counting on overloading our air defense with concentrated strikes from a large number of weapons and imitation drones. I am sure that no one in the world has an air defense system that is guaranteed to repel hundreds of air attack weapons concentrated in time and place.
Every time Russian propagandists claim that hundreds of “NATO mercenaries,” command posts, aircraft, and military factories have been destroyed, and every time our Air Force rises like a Phoenix and repel attacks quite effectively.
But in reality, it is mainly the civilian infrastructure that suffers.
The results of such strikes are carefully recorded by Ukrainian and international official structures to document the war crimes of the aggressor. Evil must be justly punished!
In turn, Ukraine values its reputation as a bona fide subject of international humanitarian law and adheres to civilized values – does not inflict targeted damage on civilians and objects. On the Embassy's website, you can read the Voluntary Report of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine in the Sphere of International Humanitarian Law.
We have noticed a certain pattern – the most massive attacks by Ukraine are carried out on the eve of, or after, telephone conversations between leaders or negotiations "on peace in Ukraine". And there is not the slightest doubt that these attacks, which have virtually no effect on Ukraine's defense, are directed precisely against the civilian population in order to break the resistance and force it to capitulate.
But Ukrainians, on the contrary, are becoming even more determined to continue the fight!
Valery Evdokimov,
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Tajikistan
