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Ukraine Documents Over 240,000 War Crimes Since Start of Full-Scale Invasion
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Ukrainian prosecutors and investigators have documented more than 240,000 cases of war crimes and crimes of aggression since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
This was reported by a representative of the Prosecutor General’s Office during the conference “From Testimony to Verdict. Justice in Wartime,” according to Ukrinform on March 19.
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“Already not more than 200,000, but today more than 240,000 facts of war crimes and crimes of aggression have been documented by prosecutors and investigators. This is undoubtedly an unprecedented number of crimes that we are seeing today and working with,” said Yana Polyakova, a prosecutor from the Department for Combating Crimes Committed in Armed Conflict.
Gennadiy Stasenko, head of the Borodianka District Court in Kyiv region, said the real number of crimes is likely much higher.
“The figure of 240,000 crimes has been mentioned. This is only a very small part of the actual number. These are the crimes for which people filed statements asking to be recognized as victims, or those that are obvious — such as when a missile hit Okhmatdyt. There are many more acts that were committed but never reported, and therefore the victims did not receive official status,” he said.
Polyakova noted that prosecutors are working to ensure investigations meet international legal standards.
“Ukraine is a state governed by the rule of law, and it is very important for us that our evidence, and later the verdicts that courts deliver on the basis of this evidence, are truly high-quality and comply with legislation, including international humanitarian law. These decisions are our face. The whole world is watching us. And it is important for us to be recognized by the legal community,” she said.
She also noted that investigators are often working within legal frameworks created after World War II, which do not always reflect the realities of modern warfare.
“Today the rules of war have changed, and the enemy we are facing does not recognize these conventions, and we see what is happening. Therefore, we are trying to work in current realities with norms that are outdated in some aspects. In some cases we succeed, in others we are still working,” Polyakova said.
Viktoriia Nastyna of the Coordination Center for Victims and Witness Support at the Prosecutor General’s Office stressed that effective justice depends on the trust of victims and witnesses.
“This trust, in my opinion, is built through support—when a victim or witness feels this support, feels safe, they can give their testimony and be effective,” she said.
The scale of documented crimes comes as European countries continue efforts to hold those responsible accountable.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the European Union is preparing new sanctions against individuals suspected of committing war crimes during Russia’s occupation of Bucha.
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According to Barrot, the EU plans to add nine people linked to crimes in Bucha to its sanctions list, which already includes about 2,600 individuals and entities.
He also said the bloc intends to introduce restrictions against four Kremlin propagandists, including French citizen Adrien Bocquet, who is accused of attempting to justify Russian war crimes and participating in disinformation campaigns related to the war.
Investigations into individual cases are also ongoing in Ukraine. Kyiv Regional Prosecutor’s Office issued suspicion notices to three Russian servicemen accused of executing a civilian in Hostomel during the early stage of the invasion.
According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, during the occupation of the Bucha district in March 2022, a commander of a Russian airborne assault company gave what prosecutors described as a knowingly criminal order to shoot a local resident, which his subordinates carried out while the town was under Russian control.
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