Lubinets: 406 Ukrainian prisoners of war tortured to death in Russia

As of today, 406 Ukrainian prisoners of war have been tortured to death in Russia, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets has said.

"As of today, Russia is one of the largest exporters of war crimes in the world: 406 of our prisoners of war have been tortured to death in Russia. Russia returns even those whose status had been officially confirmed by international organizations, including the ICRC, bearing signs of torture... Russian captivity is a conveyor belt of death," he said during the presentation of a study on violations of prisoners of war's right to medical care.

The ombudsman insists on tough decisions and separate resolutions at the level of PACE, the UN and the OSCE.

"We demand that real access be ensured for international organizations, primarily the ICRC, to all places where Ukrainian prisoners of war and illegally detained civilians are held. So far, 186 such places in Russia have been verified... We also call on our partners to apply universal jurisdiction so that every country can open criminal proceedings against Russians involved in torturing our citizens," he said.

Lubinets said the world must act decisively to save Ukrainians.

"Every minute of inaction costs the lives of Ukrainian men and women who are still in Russian captivity. We speak about this openly, we are shouting about it on all international platforms – together with the families, together with those who are waiting, and together with those who are still there, in captivity, enduring torture and humiliation," the ombudsman said.