UN commission to investigate Russia's crimes arrives in Ukraine

The Verkhovna Rada Deputy Speaker Olena Kondratyuk made an announcement.

"They discussed the work of the Commission in Ukraine, which was established to record violations of human rights, international humanitarian law and other crimes related to Russian aggression. The main task is to identify suspects, gather evidence and prepare materials so that no one escapes punishment," she said.

Representatives of the Commission noted that they were instructed to conduct a separate investigation into violations of international human rights law in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy regions in late February and March 2022, in accordance with international standards.

The chairman of the commission informed about the work on gathering facts. He also said that the investigation will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council and will be reported to the UN General Assembly at its 77th session.

"In addition, I drew the attention of the UN Commission that its activities should cover not only current events, but their root causes. I called on the mission to study the facts and crimes of Russia in previous years. In particular, in the temporarily occupied Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk regions, where they have taken place over the past eight years," Olena Kondratyuk added.

Ukrainian law enforcement agencies are investigating more than 16,000 war crimes committed since February 24, 2022.