War in the Ukraine - part 2/1
- titanja1504
- Jan 31, 2023
- 5 min read
Updated: Jun 17, 2023
Atrocities
(DE) Since April 2022, when the word "Bucha" has been mentioned, every politician, every journalist and every reasonably informed person knows what it is all about.
Russian atrocities and Ukrainian demands for weapons
It is about the discovery of atrocities by the Russian army in the occupied and now liberated town of Bucha, 25 kilometres northwest of Kyiv!
The press and top politicians cry outraged: War crimes! Putin is a war criminal!
In the aftermath, forensic experts, specialists and journalists meticulously searched for evidence that it was Russian soldiers who looted, tortured, raped and murdered - because the Kremlin denies it.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selensky promptly topped this by claiming that thousands of Ukrainians were missing. What happened to them? Were they taken to Russia? Murdered and buried in mass graves or burned to death?
Since then, reports of atrocities from all areas from which the Russian army has withdrawn have reached the public.
By default, the media added to these accounts that these reports were unconfirmed and still had to be verified. However, nobody seemed bothered by this because the information was out; thus, it has become fact.
There is no doubt about the truthfulness of the Ukrainian account for US President Joe Biden, the NATO foreign ministers and the EU Council of Ministers, and the German government.
The Ukrainian government and diplomats are increasing the pressure on Europe, especially Germany. Along the lines of 'What more has to happen before you support us with more and better weapons and decide on a complete energy import stop for Russian oil and gas so that you do not fill Putin's war chest with your payments!'
The EU Parliament recently called for a radical step towards a complete oil or gas embargo. However, the EU states are already arguing about the transitional period for the import ban on coal. The EU Commission presented as part of the sixth sanctions package against Russia a phased plan for an oil embargo at the end of April 2022.
Hungary refused to participate. Hungary gets all its oil from Russia. What would happen if much more severe measures, such as a gas embargo, were taken?
Both Germany and Italy are heavily dependent on the Russian gas supply.
Almost in a panic, Economics Minister Habeck (Greens) travels the world to find new energy sources.
But Ukraine not only demanded tighter sanctions in the early summer of 2022. (Note: "demanded" not "requested"!) Moreover, against the backdrop of Bucha, President Selensky massively demands offensive weapons to recapture Ukrainian territories, especially in the Donbas and around Mariupol and Crimea, to prevent further atrocities.
I do believe that Russian troops committed atrocities. In a private conversation with a friend, I heard about atrocities before "Bucha". A mother in Ukraine told her daughter, who had fled to Germany, but she did not want to tell her the whole picture so she would not be upset. I believe her because I am confident this mother does not have any propaganda intentions.
The corpses in the streets of Bucha, seen in photos and videos, some tied up, were killed. No question about it! But by whom?
The Russian troops were occupiers at the time of the killing, and witnesses reported in videos of atrocities and random shootings. Who made these recordings and when is unclear to some extent.
But what else was going on in the city during this occupation? Were there no resistance fighters? No colluders and revenge on those colluders? At the beginning of the war, the Ukrainian government handed out weapons to anyone in Ukraine who wanted them.
Where were these armed men during the occupation? In the Ukrainian army? They have their army weapons.
In most wars, there is resistance in occupied territories. Guerrilla fighters can make life difficult for an occupying power and successfully defend their country. It would not be the first time that compatriots get harmed in the process.
No one would condemn them in the current situation. Regret, yes, but condemn? No!
However, such armed conflicts could not be used to demand weapons.
That sounds cynical, but it may be realistic. Perhaps my mistrust is unjustified. Maybe my doubts will be dispelled.
In any case, I don't believe in the denial by the Kremlin either.
War crimes
I think war crimes by both sides are likely. However, it is undoubtedly not opportune at the moment to confront both sides with accusations because there is only one war criminal in public opinion.
In this context, one observation is revealing.
A friend of mine, who is above any suspicion of being biased, saw a short clip on a news programme on German television about war crimes committed by the Ukrainian army. Ukrainian soldiers shot captured and tied Russian soldiers in the legs.
I have not read, heard or seen anything about this anywhere.
It was also reported that both the Russian and Ukrainian armies had used banned cluster bombs. This, too, remained but a marginal note on the sidelines of the war.
I believe there should be no taboos in war reporting. Whose interests are being protected by one-sided reporting?
Reaction to the everyday horror
An obvious war crime, also according to the Geneva Convention, is, in my eyes, the destruction of residential buildings and civilian facilities. This sight fills me with as much horror as the murdered people in the streets of Bucha. Perhaps this is due to my memories of good times some years before the Maidan protests in one of those insanely high skyscrapers in a district of Kyiv.
I can still see the endless expanse of this gigantic high-rise housing estate in Kyiv's metro area. There are no street signs; instead, there are flooded construction pits and hordes of stray wild dogs. I am always afraid of getting lost, as my sense of direction is not the best.
I spent a week in the flat of a Ukrainian acquaintance with her family, consisting of three grown-up children and a son-in-law. I was allowed to cook borscht under supervision, drank plenty of vodkas while cooking, during and after the meal, and laughed and discussed Europe and politics with the young people.
I know and am glad that all of them, except the men, fled because no one would get out of these houses alive if a missile hit. And I was assured that there had been missile fire there.
Yes, and at this point, I am ashamed to admit that the destroyed homes in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Gaza did not affect me as emotionally as the Ukrainian ones.
Why is that? I would never have thought that of myself. The suffering of the Syrians, Iraqis, Afghans and Palestinians is just as intense as the suffering of the Ukrainians. How can I feel differently?!
What is wrong with us Europeans and with me?
I criticise Poland for using barbed wire and violence to prevent refugees from these countries from coming into the country and Europe because, since 2015, it has never been willing to accept refugees like other European countries.
Now, however, it is opening its doors wide to millions of refugees from Ukraine and welcomes them. Why?
Because they are neighbours?
Because they are Europeans?
Because they belong to the same culture?
Because they have the same enemy?
Because they are Christians in the broader sense?...
I probably should look at this phenomenon with less repulsion and more "psychology".
I am ashamed of this double standard and angry that in all the weeks of the Ukraine war, few commentators have denounced this inequality and difference in the measurement of human rights and human dignity. To my knowledge, not a single politician stood up for the equal treatment of refugees. (TA)
Links to articles - War in Ukraine
War in Ukraine - part 2/1
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