HC Türk: Ukraine Needs Peace Based On Human Rights

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk
Update to the 58th session of the Human Rights Council on Ukraine
Geneva, 28 March 2025

Mr. President, distinguished delegates,

Recent weeks have seen intense activity around a possible ceasefire in Ukraine, which would be very welcome. The discussions and reported commitments on freedom of navigation on the Black Sea announced this week will be an important step for global food security.

And yet, in parallel with these talks, fighting in Ukraine has intensified, and is killing and injuring even more civilians. Casualty figures in the first three months of this year were 30 per cent higher than the same period last year.

My Office verified that 413 civilians have been killed and more than 2,000 injured since the beginning of the year. More than 30 civilians were killed and 200 injured in just one week during March, and the actual number is likely higher.

In one recent attack on 7 March, Russian armed forces attacked the town of Dobropillia, with a ballistic missile, cluster munitions, and drones. My Office visited the site and verified at least 11 civilians killed and 48 injured.

Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, our office has verified that more than 12,700 civilians have been killed and more than 30,000 have been injured. Again, the actual figures are almost certainly much higher.

Every single one of those deaths is a tragedy; a life cut short; a grieving family; a lost future.

I will never forget the Ukrainians I met as we sheltered together from Russian bombardment when I visited Kyiv two years ago, or the woman who showed me her apartment block which had been reduced to rubble.

The vast majority of civilian casualties in this war are Ukrainians killed and injured by Russian forces.

Three years into the war, the Russian Federation continues to use powerful explosive weapons in populated areas, despite unacceptably high levels of civilian casualties, running counter to international humanitarian law.

Russia’s long-range missiles, drones and aerial glide bombs were responsible for 40 per cent of casualties this year.

I am alarmed by the increasing use of short-range combat drones by both parties to the conflict. These new devices have killed and injured more civilians than any other weapon since December.

I am also concerned by the killing of civilians in Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine. Six people, including three journalists, were reportedly killed by a Ukrainian rocket strike in Luhansk region earlier this week.

Mr. President,

The report my Office published on 21 March provides details of the suffering of millions of Ukrainian children since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

My Office verified that between the beginning of the full-scale invasion and the end of 2024, some 669 Ukrainian children were killed and 1,833 injured. Again, the actual numbers are likely much higher.

Beyond death, life-changing injuries and psychological trauma, the conflict has disrupted education and healthcare for children on a massive scale; forced more than 2.4 million children from their homes; separated children from their parents; and undermined their rights to health, housing, education, family life, and an adequate standard of living.

Landmines and explosive remnants of war pose long-term risks to children’s lives and safety.

In Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine, the report provides disturbing details of children facing serious violence, including summary executions. My Office verified that five boys and two girls were summarily executed in 2022 and 2023.

Children were also subjected to arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment, including sexual violence. My Office has documented that at least 200 children have been transferred within Russian-occupied territory or to the Russian Federation.

Schools in occupied territory teach the Russian curriculum in the Russian language, and children are not allowed to speak Ukrainian. Children are compelled to participate in pro-Russian patriotic and military training, deepening social divisions and creating inter-generational tensions. These policies violate international humanitarian law.

More broadly, there is continued, coercive pressure on residents of occupied territory to obtain Russian citizenship in order to access basic services. On 1 January, the occupying authorities in several regions stopped paying social benefits to people who do not have Russian passports.

Last week, a new Russian decree stated that Ukrainian citizens in the Russian Federation, and in the occupied territory of Ukraine, must leave by 10 September unless they have legalized their presence under Russian law.

The occupying authorities continue to prosecute Ukrainians for criticizing the occupation, using Ukrainian symbols, or expressing pro-Ukrainian sentiments.

I am also appalled by the crackdown and repression against those opposing the war within Russia itself. Thousands of anti-war protesters have been prosecuted under new laws that criminalize criticism of the war.

Credible reports indicate a sharp increase in prosecutions, convictions and long sentences of people who participated in peaceful anti-war resistance, including social media posts.

Mr. President,

Executions of Ukrainian soldiers captured by the Russian Federation have increased dramatically since August 2024. My Office judged 27 such executions, in which a total of 84 soldiers were killed, as credible.

Prisoners-of-war and civilian detainees held by the Russian Federation are subjected to dire conditions. My Office continues to receive allegations of widespread and systematic torture and ill-treatment, including sexual violence.

I am also disturbed by an apparent policy to prosecute Ukrainian soldiers captured on the territory of the Russian Federation for, and I quote, “terrorist activities”. My Office has recorded dozens of such convictions in which Ukrainian prisoners have been sentenced to 15 to 17 years in prison.

I am deeply concerned by the atmosphere of impunity and dehumanization that prevails over the widespread violations I have described.

Under international law, prisoners of war must not be tortured, executed, or prosecuted merely for taking part in hostilities, no matter who they are or where they fought.

Mr. President,

While the war continues to rage, I call again for an end to attacks on civilians and to the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. All precautions must be taken to avoid harm to civilians.

Summary executions and the torture and mistreatment of prisoners of war must end. I call on the Russian Federation to respect the human rights of people in areas under its occupation.

And I urge the international community to use its influence to ensure full respect for international human rights and humanitarian law.

Mr. President,

Limited ceasefires that protect shipping lanes and infrastructure are a welcome step forward. What is most needed now is an end to the horrific suffering being inflicted daily in Ukraine.

Peace, in line with General Assembly resolutions, the United Nations Charter and international law, is more urgent than ever. It must be anchored in human rights.

Peace based on human rights means the meaningful participation of women and young people in peace processes.

It means the return of all prisoners of war, the release of civilians detained arbitrarily – including those in Russia who oppose the war – and the return of children transferred by the Russian Federation.

It means an end to discrimination, based on nationality or language.

It means full respect for freedom of expression, language, culture and religion.

It means people are able to move freely again across all parts of Ukraine, and to get on with their lives, wherever they want to live. House, land and property rights need to be restored.

And peace based on human rights means protecting people, including through demining, full and unhindered access to humanitarian aid, and independent human rights monitoring.

We know from experience that truth telling, transitional justice, and accountability are essential to sustainable peace.

Mr. President,

My Office has been in Ukraine since 2014, documenting and reporting on human rights violations.

We remain at the disposal of both parties and the international community to keep human rights and the Ukrainian people at the centre of all discussions around peace.

To read the full report, click here The impact of the armed conflict and occupation on children’s rights in Ukraine, 24 February 2022 — 31 December 2024 | UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine: https://ukraine.ohchr.org/en/The-impact-of-the-armed-conflict-and-occupation-on-childrens-rights-in-Ukraine-24-February-2022-31-December-2024

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