Ukraine is fully prepared to immediately begin the evacuation of civilians from the temporarily occupied city of Oleshky in Kherson region and to involve the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), but the Russian side is blocking all humanitarian initiatives, Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets stated on the air of the "Inter" TV channel.
"Ukraine is ready to start the evacuation right now. We have offered safe routes and a ceasefire regime to the Russian side, and we are ready to involve the ICRC as a third party. However, Russia's response to all proposals is 'no,'" the Ombudsman emphasized.
According to him, the Ombudsman's Office has spent months trying to coordinate the opening of a humanitarian corridor with Russia, and the ICRC has confirmed its readiness to facilitate the departure of residents from the disaster zone, but the negotiation process has been halted by the Russian side.
Lubinets noted that due to the artificial blockade and the resulting humanitarian catastrophe, civilians have been left in survival conditions, while the occupiers use the local population as a human shield. He stressed that such actions constitute a targeted policy of genocide.
The official also recalled that Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiha, speaking from the UN Security Council rostrum, directly compared the blockade of Oleshky to the Holodomor and the Nazi siege of Leningrad, urging the international community to pressure Moscow.
"Moscow is the sole reason for this catastrophe and the sole obstacle to ending it," Lubinets concluded, assuring that the Ukrainian side continues to seek opportunities to rescue people.
