MOSCOW, October 8 (RIA Novosti) – The UN report on the human rights situation in Ukraine is the first step by international organizations towards acknowledgment of the responsibility of the Kiev controlled troops for the shelling of residential areas and civilian losses, Alexei Pushkov, a senior Russian parliamentarian, said Wednesday.
"We now see that the report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also contains an acknowledgment - very cautious, very careful - that in some cases the Ukrainian armed forces were responsible for the shelling of residential areas and civilian deaths. We are now witnessing the phenomenon of an extremely reluctant and belated recognition of the obvious," Pushkov told RIA Novosti.
This phenomenon is well known following the example of the events in South Ossetia in 2008, when the Georgian president ordered an enhanced bombardment of Tskhinval, while Western countries refused to admit it at the time, Pushkov said.
"Well-respected international organizations that have a lot of weight in Western countries are now beginning to recognize – very slowly, carefully and with inconsistencies - that Kiev has a stake in what is happening," the Russian lawmaker said.
At the same time, public opinion in the West has long been suspicious of Kiev's methods of waging war, Pushkov said and referred to the use of phosphorus bombs and ballistic missiles in southeastern Ukraine, which are prohibited by international conventions.
The report, released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, covers the period from August 18 to September 16 and contains testimonial evidence of cases of violations carried out by Ukrainian military units.
Amnesty International has said that the Ukrainian government is responsible for war crimes and human rights violations committed by Ukrainian volunteer battalions.
