The shock caused by the discovery of numerous bodies last weekend in Bucha, near Kyiv, where Ukraine accuses Russian forces of committing a “massacre,” appears to be ongoing. Ukrainian Interior Minister Denys Monastyrsky, who visited Bucha yesterday, revealed that “dozens of bodies” remain in homes and in the surrounding forests.
The situation is worse in Borodyanka, as confirmed by Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, in a video posted on YouTube last night, stating that “Bucha is not the worst; anyone who visits Borodyanka confirms that the situation there is horrific,” according to Agence France-Presse. Borodyanka is located about 50 kilometers from Kyiv, and Russian forces have recently withdrawn from there as part of a repositioning strategy to apparently focus their military effort on the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.
It’s worth noting that the images and scenes that emerged from towns in northern Ukraine, particularly Bucha, sparked several international criticisms, especially following Kyiv's accusations that Russian forces committed “massacres,” as described by them.
Sanctions and Diplomatic War
France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Slovenia have expelled dozens, if not hundreds, of Russian diplomats in the past two days (April 4 and 5, 2022). Additionally, the West has threatened to impose further economic sanctions against Moscow and its politicians and their families after finding dozens of bodies in civilian clothing in Bucha.
Conversely, Russia has “categorically” denied its involvement in such crimes, denouncing the fabricated images aimed at tarnishing its reputation and that of Russian soldiers. Russia has also stated that the expulsion of its diplomats will not go unanswered and will respond in kind.
Since the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine on February 24, Western countries have aligned with Kyiv, supporting it with weapons and aid and imposing thousands of painful sanctions on Moscow, which insists on its right to disarm its western neighbor, which it considers a threat to its security, and to prevent it from joining NATO.
