The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday summoned a representative of the Russian embassy in Vilnius to express its “strong protest” over the execution of 16 Ukrainian soldiers who had surrendered near Pokrovsk on September 30.
“This is a flagrant and blatant violation of Russia’s obligations under the Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War,” the ministry said in a statement.
A video showing Russian soldiers executing Ukrainian troops while they were surrendering surfaced in September, but Kyiv confirmed the information only on Wednesday.
Lithuania “also condemned Russia’s continued aggression against Ukraine and the air strikes against civilian and critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine, which have reached unprecedented proportions in the last month”, the ministry said.
“The planners and perpetrators of these and other Russian war crimes must know that their identities will be revealed and that they will face imminent legal accountability,” it added.
“Lithuania reiterates that Russia must immediately cease its military aggression against Ukraine, withdraw its troops from the Ukrainian territory and respect Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders,” the press release reads.
Although Kyiv launched a surprise incursion into Russia’s Kursk region on August 6, Moscow continues to strengthen its positions in the Donetsk region.
In recent months, Moscow has primarily targeted the Ukrainian logistics hub of Pokrovsk, a city situated along the roads and railways supplying Ukrainian forces across the front lines.
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