PRESS RELEASE : Ambassadors of foreign countries visited the liberated city of Izyum and saw the consequences of the Russian occupation [September 2022]

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 23 September 2022.

Pursuant to the instructions of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy on conveying the truth about Russia’s bloody crimes committed on Ukrainian soil to the world as much as possible, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Andriy Sybiha and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yevhen Perebyinis, together with a group of foreign ambassadors, visited the city of Izyum in the Kharkiv region de-occupied by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The delegation had the opportunity to see with their own eyes the consequences of the war crimes of the Russian invaders, the genocide of the Ukrainian population by the Russians and the crimes against humanity. In particular, the ambassadors visited a multi-story residential building destroyed by a 500-kilogram Russian bomb. 53 people died here, including seven young Ukrainians.

The heads of the diplomatic missions also visited the National Police station in Izyum, which the occupiers turned into a torture chamber, and talked with two local residents who managed to survive the torture.

Foreign diplomats saw the mass grave of Ukrainians tortured and killed by the Russian occupiers discovered in a forest strip on the outskirts of Izyum. 436 bodies were exhumed, including five children. Most of the bodies have signs of violent death.

At the scene of the tragedy, the heads of diplomatic missions talked with journalists, in particular with representatives of leading foreign media.

“The world must know the truth about the bloody crimes of the occupiers. That is why it is extremely important that today foreign diplomats were able to see with their own eyes what the Russian occupiers leave behind. We emphasize that the Russian military-political leadership must be punished for the crime of armed aggression against Ukraine,” Andriy Sybiha said.

While in Izyum, the ambassadors also met with representatives of the military-civilian leadership of the region: Head of the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration Oleg Syniehubov, Head of the Izyum District State Administration Stepan Maselskyi, representative of the command of the Kharkiv military garrison Mykhailo Chalyi.

The delegation included: the Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine, heads of diplomatic missions of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Spain, Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Sweden, Slovakia, Switzerland, Türkiye, Poland, Slovenia, France and Denmark.

The visit was one of the steps taken under the leadership of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to hold Russia accountable for crimes of aggression, genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine.