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Oris Johnson called on millions of Russians on Tuesday to distance themselves from Vladimir Putin’s war crimes in Bucha, stressing: “I cannot believe that he is acting on your behalf.”
The prime minister was recording a video, which he will broadcast in part in Russian, in the hope that his message will go viral and that the people of Russia will hear the truth about the horrific atrocities committed by Putin’s forces.
He described torturous reports and footage of civilians killed in Bucha, near Kyiv, and other cities, some with their hands tied and shot in the back of the head, a sign of execution.
The world was also horrified by reports of mass graves discovered and women raped in front of their children.
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The prime minister described Putin’s war crimes as a “stain on Russia’s honor” and that they “betray the trust of every Russian mother who proudly waves goodbye to her son as he heads to join the army.”
Mr Johnson added: “Those responsible will be held accountable. And history will remember who watched from the other side. Your president is committing war crimes. But I can’t believe he’s acting on your behalf.
Russia’s state media have failed to report on the horrors of the war in Ukraine, where the bodies of at least 410 civilians have been found in cities and towns captured by Putin’s troops.
But the suppression of news agencies and demonstrations, with thousands of anti-war protesters arrested, has failed to stop reports from Ukraine and the West from filtering Russian citizens on social media or by phone.
Before addressing the UN Security Council, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Putin and his military leaders would not be able to “mislead the world” about their war crimes, as he warned of possible worsening atrocities than the massacre. in Bucha.
Unimaginable losses, pain and suffering inflicted on so many families were revealed in Bucha after Russian troops were forced to retreat. Among them is 57-year-old Tanya Nedashkovska, who is mourning her husband’s death.
Mr Zelenski called for a “most comprehensive, transparent investigation” to identify and bring to justice those “who gave orders” and carried out the horrific massacre of civilians in his country.
In his address late at night, the president said: “Currently there is information about more than 300 killed and tortured in Bucha alone. The list of victims is likely to be much larger when the whole city is inspected.
He also grimly warned: “There is already information that the victims of the occupiers may be even higher in Borodyanka and some other liberated cities.”
He stressed that war crimes were worse than “even during the Nazi occupation 80 years ago”.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba also warned that the evidence so far of civilian killings so far was just the tip of the iceberg.
Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, described the “genocide of Ukrainians” after visiting areas around the capital.
He said he saw dead civilians, including an elderly woman, and a car with a white flag and “children” letters on the outside, which had been shot and had blood inside. Satellite images taken weeks ago of Bucha show the bodies of civilians on the street, a private US company said, undermining Russian government claims that Ukrainian forces had caused the deaths or that the scene had been staged.
Maxar Technologies provided nine images of Bucha on March 18, 19 and 31 to Reuters. At least four of the images appear to show bodies on Jablonska Street.
The city was occupied by Russian forces until about March 30. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claims that the bodies were “staged” and that their images and what he said was a fake version of Ukraine about the events were spread on social networks in Western countries and Ukraine.
The Russian embassy in London tweeted: “FM # Lavrov: #Russia has requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on the situation in #Bucha, because such provocations pose a direct threat to international peace and security. We will demand that #UK, as the current president of the UN Security Council, fulfill its responsibilities. “
Labor MP Chris Bryant expressed the views of many in Britain, saying: “No. You are the butchers of Bucha. You shot people in the head with your hands tied behind your back. You slaughtered whole families and dug mass graves. You will be held accountable. ”
The United Kingdom is taking the lead in pushing for a war crimes trial.
Mr Zelenski accused the Kremlin of spreading “lies” and “distorting the facts” about the atrocities. However, he added: “They will not succeed. They will not be able to deceive the whole world. The time will come when every Russian will learn the whole truth about who his fellow citizens killed. Who gave orders. Who turned a blind eye to the murders. We will establish all this. “
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