Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) urged a comprehensive examination of Russian war crimes in Ukraine on the fourth anniversary of Bucha’s liberation. Speaking before an EU Foreign Ministers meeting in Kyiv and Bucha, he said, “Bucha stands as a symbol for countless other Russian war crimes”. He pointed to the massacres in Izyum, the bombing of the Kramatorsk railway station, and the siege of Mariupol, arguing that wherever Putin’s Russia goes, murder and barbarity will follow. Yet Wadephul noted that Bucha also represents the strength of the Ukrainian army in retaking vast areas, the resilience and courage of Ukrainians, and their right to a future free from Russian oppression.
“The meeting today also delivers a clear message to Russia: those responsible for this war and the crimes committed must not escape punishment” he added. “We owe this to the victims, their families, and friends”. To this end, the German government is backing Ukraine in collecting evidence and documenting Russian offenses. As a founding member of the damages commission and through its advocacy for a special tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine, Germany-alongside its partners-is working to make the legal reckoning of Russian atrocities a reality.