The International Committee of the Red Cross announced on Thursday that it had recently had access to Ukrainian and Russian prisoners of war, visits which until then had been extremely limited and sporadic.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has often and sharply criticized the ICRC because, in his view, the organization does not do enough to gain access to Ukrainian soldiers taken prisoner by Russian forces. The ICRC itself had expressed its frustration at not being able to fulfill its mission, which is nevertheless enshrined in the Geneva Conventions, which define the laws of war.
“Last week, the ICRC carried out a two-day visit to Ukrainian prisoners of war. Another visit is taking place this week. During the same period, visits were also made to Russian prisoners of war. Other visits are planned by the end of the month,” said an ICRC press release.
The delegates were able to assess the living conditions and the treatment of the prisoners, and give news to their families, the organization further indicates.
She was also able to distribute books, personal hygiene products, blankets and warm clothes.
The ICRC gave no details of the prisoners’ living conditions.
Asked by AFP, the ICRC did not immediately respond to the number of prisoners visited or the places where the Red Cross teams were able to go.
“These visits represent an important step forward because they help preserve humanity in the brutality of the international armed conflict,” ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric said in the statement.
“We are able to assess how prisoners of war are being treated and make sure their families are kept informed. I hope that at the end of these visits, we will be granted more regular access to all prisoners of war,” she added.
However, the organization is not satisfied with these visits.
“The visits that have taken place recently are an important step forward. Nevertheless, the ICRC must be granted unimpeded access to all prisoners of war, whom it must be able to see repeatedly and without witnesses, wherever they are interned,” the press release underlines.
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine had recently detailed the mistreatment to which prisoners of war are subjected by their Russian or Ukrainian jailers, citing in particular cases of torture.
If the Ukrainian authorities granted unhindered access to the Russian prison camps, it had to rely on the testimonies of Ukrainian prisoners released before being able to return to the camps controlled by the Russians.
“The vast majority” of those interviewed captured by Russian forces and its allied armed groups “told us that they had been tortured and ill-treated during their internment,” Ms. Bogner said.
Not only to extort information from them, but also to “intimidate and humiliate” them on a daily basis, explained Matilda Bogner, the head of the mission in mid-November.
She also reported “credible allegations” of summary executions of Russian prisoners of war captured by Ukrainian forces and several cases of torture and ill-treatment.