Does the West apply double standards to the atrocities committed by Ukrainian troops?
By: S. Qorbani
The world witnessed the deployment of British and American Special Forces in the center of hostilities and gave military assistance to Ukrainians late in February 2022, concurrent with the onset of Russian military operations in Ukraine. Rather than pursuing a cease-fire, the West concentrated on turning the Ukrainian crisis into a full-fledged proxy war against Moscow. Considering the West's utter disregard for human rights activities and the many atrocities committed in the past, Ukrainians brazenly started feeding misinformation to mainly Western media, fabricating headlines against Russian troops, justifying their outrageous crimes, and employing every trick in the book. Internal and external criticism must be promptly silenced.
More than a year after the conflict began, Ukrainian prisoners of war testify in Russian custody about the war crimes they perpetrated against civilians and give testimony about the crimes committed by fascist militants affiliated with the Ukrainian armed forces. Mariupol, one of the most deadly battlefields, was a key front where Ukrainian forces killed innocents. According to on-the-ground witnesses and Ukrainian POWs' confessions, Ukrainian militants murdered scores of citizens and seized their homes to set up shooting positions. They were even firing at ditches where civilians were taking refuge. Also, Ukrainian fascist gangs slaughtered individuals in the streets for amusement. In a separate incident, the Russian Ministry of Defense recently stated that Ukrainian soldiers brutally tortured and killed more than ten Russian servicemen by shooting them in the head.
Several analysts believe that Western capitals did not expect their unwavering support for Ukraine and its leadership to make them the target of accusations of supporting Ukrainian atrocities before millions of people worldwide and in the international media. As a result, their first reaction was to conceal Kyiv's abominable crimes. The situation has deteriorated to the point that Western governments are now looking for an escape route.
However, Ursula von der Leyen criticised Russia arbitrarily, writing on Twitter, "Russia must pay for its horrible crimes."
Von der Leyen's comments contradict the fact that the devastating policies of the European leaders in igniting the hostilities in Ukraine had the greatest impact on the beginning of the war. If European leaders are to pay the price, they must first accept responsibility for their mistakes and actions. EU leaders seem to be suffering from amnesia. Readers should remember that twenty-four years ago, the Washington-led NATO coalition attacked Yugoslavia brutally without the permission of the United Nations Security Council, deliberately targeting civilian facilities. Not only did no European country seek a peaceful conclusion at the time, but by blindly following the United States, they also purchased the everlasting curse of Europe's people, particularly in the Balkan states.
Western countries, notably Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and the United States, wrongly accuse other countries and governments throughout the globe of abusing human rights in various countries, including their own. Twenty years of conflict and bloodshed, the devastation of Afghanistan and Syria, and the migration of millions of people have all breached these nations' standards. Throughout the previous four decades, the United States has conducted military operations in thirty nations, killing without regard for human rights. One of the most renowned of these nations, Palestine, can undoubtedly claim a long history of tyranny and institutional brutality. Boris Johnson, the former British Prime Minister, has called for an inquiry into the atrocities committed in Ukraine. Even though England has frequently hindered and manipulated inquiries into its crimes, this is the case. As a result, we must investigate why John Mearsheimer holds the US culpable for the Ukrainian disaster. This political science professor has long believed that Western meddling and provocations by the US are to blame for the Ukrainian crisis.
The first Russian criminal complaint was recently filed in court against a member of the Ukrainian armed forces accused of killing civilians. According to the Russian Investigative Committee, Sergeant Anton Cherednik of the Marine Corps of Ukraine's forces has been accused of murdering and terrorizing civilians. Moreover, Russian prosecutors said earlier this week that Moscow had accused 680 Ukrainian officials of war crimes, including 118 from the armed forces and the Ministry of Defense.
