OSCE declares Russia’s actions in Ukraine genocide, urges decolonization

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) identified the decolonization of Russia as a necessary precondition for establishing enduring peace in Ukraine, calling for support of the Peace Formula and Crimean Platform and urging member states to establish a Special Tribunal to hold Russia accountable for its atrocities in Ukraine.

Jul 1, 2024 - 07:00

OSCE declares Russia’s actions in Ukraine genocide, urges decolonization

bucha cemetery Russian troops genocide Ukraine

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly (PA) adopted a resolution recognizing the actions of the Russian military-political leadership and armed forces during the full-scale invasion as genocide against the Ukrainian people, according to Pavlo Frolov, a member of the Ukrainian parliamentary delegation.

Russia’s war against Ukraine constitutes genocide based on the United Nations (UN) definition and evidence of mass civilian murders, systematic torture, and deportations, with up to 19,000 Ukrainian children forcibly deported to Russia. Russian rhetoric and actions indicate intent to destroy Ukrainian identity and existence, mirroring historical genocides.

The resolution, passed on the opening day of the OSCE PA’s summer session in Bucharest, also identifies the decolonization of Russia as a necessary precondition for establishing lasting peace.

Key points from the 70 clauses of the OSCE PA resolution:

A call for all 53 OSCE participating countries to support the de-occupation of Crimea and all occupied territories of Ukraine through the Peace Formula and the Crimean Platform;

A call for OSCE states to establish a Special Tribunal to hold the Russian Federation accountable for crimes committed during its aggressive war against Ukraine and to conduct investigations into mass atrocities, murders, torture, and rapes perpetrated by the Russian army.

OSCE countries are invited to quickly launch a mechanism for using frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine and join the Agreement on the International Register of Damage Caused to Ukraine by Russian aggression.

The 2024 presidential elections in the Russia should be recognized as rigged and undermining the legitimacy of the entire Russian electoral system.

To show support for the creation of an International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children, as well as ensuring the release of Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians.

A call to ban the import of Russian liquefied gas into the European Union, re-export, and transit through EU ports.

The OSCE PA session is set to continue until 3 July.

In 2023, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly unanimously recognized Russian war crimes in Ukraine as genocide

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) also recognized the forced deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia as genocide.

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