Kyiv seeking to involve OSCE in documenting crimes against Ukrainian POWs

This was stated by Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa in an interview with Ukrinform.

During her visit to Vienna, Betsa held meetings with the OSCE Secretary General and heads of various institutions to discuss key issues for Ukraine.

“First and foremost, we discussed the potential role of the OSCE in contributing to a just peace,” she said, adding that discussions also focused on activating the institutional potential of the OSCE’s structures, such as the High Commissioner on National Minorities, the Representative on Freedom of the Media, and the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

According to Betsa, special attention was paid to utilizing existing OSCE mechanisms.

“In the case of the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, this includes raising public awareness about Russia’s actions, including crimes against Ukrainian journalists, such as the killing of Viktoria Roshchyna, and the systematic suppression of freedom of speech in temporarily occupied territories,” she noted.

Betsa emphasized the need to document crimes linked to Russian aggression, especially the execution of Ukrainian POWs, which constitutes a war crime.

“ODIHR and other OSCE bodies must address this. We will also initiate the launch of the OSCE’s Moscow Mechanism on Ukrainian POWs to document crimes committed against them. The collected evidence will later serve as a basis in international courts,” Betsa said.

During her meetings at OSCE headquarters, the topic of returning Ukrainian children abducted by Russia was also raised, which is a key priority for Ukraine and President Zelensky.

“The return of all Ukrainian children, the release of POWs and illegally detained civilians — these are prerequisites for any peace process. The humanitarian track must be prioritized. We see the OSCE’s role as crucial here, both institutionally and politically, in applying pressure on Russia, which remains an OSCE participating state,” she concluded.

As Ukrinform previously reported, Ukrainian law enforcement agencies are investigating the execution of 268 Ukrainian POWs: 208 killed on the battlefield and 59 in the Olenivka prison colony.