The human rights organization Amnesty International (AI) presented a report in which it collected facts of violations of international humanitarian law by the Ukrainian military during the conflict.

According to some experts, the appearance of such a report signals that attempts are being made in the Western community to look at the situation in Ukraine from different angles.

“It's good that there is a report, that in the West for the first time they paid attention to this.

The report presents the facts.

Moreover, it is worth noting that Amnesty International is known for its rather one-sided pro-Western views on human rights issues.

And even if she began to pay attention to the grossest violations by Kyiv and its subdivisions, then this is already saying something.

A serious reaction should follow from the UN and the rest of the human rights community, ”said Senator Konstantin Dolgov in a conversation with RT.

At the same time, he expressed the opinion that representatives of the establishment of Western countries will try to ignore the AI ​​report.

Nikita Danyuk, deputy director of the RUDN Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts, member of the Russian Civic Chamber, agreed with him, explaining that Western politicians prefer to turn a blind eye to those actions of Ukraine that contradict its image of a “fighter for freedom and democracy.”

“The report of human rights activists will in no way make Western politicians notice the war crimes committed by the Ukrainian side.

Because what the Armed Forces of Ukraine are doing happens with the approval of Western curators, ”explained the interlocutor of RT.

According to him, the AI ​​report in some way even plays into the hands of these circles, because it creates the illusion of an objective view of what is happening.

The card of objectivity was previously played by US Ambassador-at-Large Beth Van Shack, who oversees issues related to the suppression of war crimes and their investigation at the State Department.

At a briefing on June 15, she pointed out the difference in the reaction of Moscow and Kyiv to accusations of war crimes.

Allegedly, the Ukrainian side admits violations, if any, and seeks to bring those responsible to justice, while the Russian side denies everything.

However, she did not give a single example to support her words.

“The collective West, led by the United States, is acting quite competently, allowing a conditionally independent human rights organization to denounce Ukraine, but without replicating the data it has collected in the media and without giving an official reaction to them.

After all, no one needs a precedent in which at least one institution, politician or political force would recognize the validity of Russia's statements about the crimes of Kyiv, ”Daniuk emphasized.

Also on russian.rt.com “Nothing can be justified”: how the Armed Forces of Ukraine use prohibited mines in residential areas of Donbass

Violation of humanitarian law

According to AI Secretary General Agnes Callamard, human rights activists have recorded cases when the Ukrainian military posed a threat to civilians or violated the rules of war by operating in populated areas.

The investigation showed that the Ukrainian Armed Forces launched strikes from residential areas, and also placed their bases in residential buildings, although they were able to take more neutral positions and not endanger local residents.

“According to international humanitarian law, all parties to the conflict, as far as possible, should avoid the deployment of military installations in or near densely populated areas,” the document emphasizes.

Otherwise, the military must warn civilians of their presence and, if necessary, help them evacuate, the AI ​​notes.

“In the cases that have been studied by Amnesty staff, this does not seem to have happened,” the human rights activists stressed.

As Kallamar noted, the position of the defending side does not exempt the Armed Forces of Ukraine from the need to comply with international humanitarian law.

The report of human rights activists caused a sharp reaction in Kyiv.

So, the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Dmitry Kuleba, said that he was outraged by the conclusions of AI and considered them unfair.

“This behavior of Amnesty International is not about finding and reporting the truth to the world ... Therefore, stop doing this creation of a fake reality, where everyone is slightly to blame for something,” he said in a video message.

In turn, adviser to the head of the office of the President of Ukraine Mikhail Podolyak on his Twitter accused human rights activists of allegedly acting in the interests of Moscow, which hopes to disrupt the supply of Western weapons to Kyiv. 

Meanwhile, political scientist Alexander Asafov believes that the Amnesty International report is to some extent useful to Kyiv, as it “sets off” the data published by the Russian Ministry of Defense on torture and abuse of prisoners of war.

“In order to divert attention from this sensitive topic, AI indicates that there are violations by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

But, despite all their criticality, human rights activists are limited only to “herbivorous” recommendations: withdraw troops and ensure evacuation, ”the analyst said in a conversation with RT.

In this regard, he suggested that there would not be a wide reaction to the report among Western politicians.

“This selective blindness has existed for a long time, because it is politically unprofitable to notice atrocities against the civilian population and torture and abuse of prisoners.

After all, then a logical question arises: why help this regime if it is so inhuman?

the political scientist said.

  • Destruction in Ukraine

  • © Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

"You don't show it"

Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov drew attention to the unwillingness of the Western community to objectively look at what is happening in Ukraine.

In an interview with the BBC published on June 16, he noted that the Western media do not cover the criminal actions of the Ukrainian armed groups in their reports.

“Do you show the results of the AFU bombing of settlements or do you not show them in your reports?

You don’t show it,” the Foreign Minister said.

And this despite the fact that Western media employees in Moscow cannot but see the materials of journalists working in the Donbass and what is happening as a result of Ukrainian shelling of peaceful settlements, Lavrov added.

At the end of July, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova expressed the opinion that Western sponsors of the Armed Forces of Ukraine should bear the same responsibility for the crimes of the Ukrainian army as the Kyiv regime.

Thus, she commented on the allocation by Brussels of another tranche of €500 million as military assistance to Ukraine.

In turn, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation noted the day before that the Kyiv authorities, using the patronage of the West, do not limit themselves to any moral or legal norms.

“Every day, servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and nationalist battalions commit crimes that are not properly appreciated by the international community,” Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said at a briefing for foreign military attachés.

He added that many falsifications about crimes allegedly committed by Russian military personnel are posted on the Internet.

“Such connivance by the international community, as well as the desire of the Ukrainian authorities to hide their crimes, in our opinion, led to the tragedy in the present.

Yelenovka village - shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine of the place of detention of Ukrainian prisoners of war, ”Fomin emphasized.

"Continuation of the anti-Russian line"

Political scientists note that the investigation of the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine during the conflict does not meet the interests of the collective West.

Instead, they prefer to focus on Russia and document its steps.

In particular, the case has already been taken up by the International Criminal Court, which is working closely with a joint investigation team created by Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine.

The United States is actively involved in data collection.

So, on June 21, the US Department of Justice announced the creation of a departmental group to assist Ukraine in investigating alleged war crimes.

“The US Department of Justice will seek to use all mechanisms to bring to justice those who commit war crimes and other atrocities in Ukraine,” Department Chief Merrick Garland said in a statement.

The team will provide operational assistance and advice in the field of criminal prosecution, as well as participate in the collection of evidence, forensic examinations and legal analysis.

Its head is Eli Rosenbaum, who previously led the department of the Ministry of Justice, which oversees issues related to the search and punishment of Nazi criminals.

Political scientists also noted that the United States launched an information campaign to create the image of Russia as a country sponsoring terrorism.

“This is a continuation of the anti-Russian line, an attempt to put additional pressure on us.

But it is absolutely clear that it is the Kyiv regime that has been engaged in state terrorism, and for eight years at that.

And today he no longer hides that he intends to shell the territories of the Russian Federation with the help of Western weapons.

And Western governments tacitly support this, which makes them more worthy of the status of sponsors of terrorism,” said Senator Konstantin Dolgov.

In this regard, all the aspirations of the United States to take part in any investigations in Ukraine are “nothing more than mimicry and attempts to shift from a sore head to a healthy one,” the politician believes.

Nikita Danyuk agrees with his point of view.

He noted that the United States is not interested in an objective investigation of the events in Ukraine.

“This is just a continuation of the campaign to demonize our country.

After all, it is already clear that all conclusions and conclusions will be falsified or made on false facts.

Therefore, the reports of puppet organizations on Ukraine do not greatly hinder the United States from creating a parallel reality.

Moreover, they can be used to give it more legitimacy and “objectivity,” the analyst concluded.