Today, Putin’s monsters have committed yet another war crime – a shopping center in Kharkiv was bombed with people inside. The exact number of victims is still unknown, but it is already clear that the death toll is in the tens, if not hundreds, of people. This war crime was committed absolutely consciously and with special cynicism, because those who committed it could not but know that there would inevitably be a lot of people in the shopping center during the day. That seems to be what they were counting on in their aim to kill as many civilians as possible.
We express our condolences to the families and friends of all the victims and our support for all those affected by this tragedy.
At the same time, we express our indignation and protest at the continued inaction of Western countries, which declare their readiness to help Ukraine in every possible way, but are unable to provide Ukraine with everything it needs to protect its territory and citizens, not to mention weapons that can be used for offensive purposes. The large-scale invasion of Ukraine by Putin’s Russian Federation has been going on for three years, and the United States, Europe and NATO still do not dare to wage war against Putinism seriously, even if this war is being waged by other people’s, Ukrainian hands and does not require human casualties from the West.
We insist that the West should finally define its goals for this war, designating as the main goal the complete defeat of Putinism in the war with the subsequent dismantling of Putin’s regime in the Russian Federation. We demand to immediately stop any flirtations with Putin’s regime on the international arena and do everything for the victory of Ukraine. We call on the U.S., EU and NATO countries to immediately transfer to Ukraine all weapons necessary for victory. Delaying assistance to Ukraine in the face of Russia’s ongoing terrorization of the Ukrainian population is a direct condoning of Putin’s military aggression. Responsibility for the deaths of Ukrainian civilians killed daily by Russian shelling lies not only with the war criminals who commit their crimes, but also in part with those who condone them. It is not only action that is criminal, but also inaction.
We also believe that it is long past time to allow Ukraine to use Western weapons to strike military targets on Russian territory. It is impossible to win a war without retaliating with a strike. Putting weapons in their hands to immediately tie them up is a path of cowardly defeatism that does not lead to victory.
In addition, we strongly appeal to the politicized part of the Russian emigration. Against the backdrop of ongoing casualties among Ukrainian civilians, it will not be possible once again to hide your head in the sand by taking a neutral-anti-war position. Support Ukraine directly in its struggle and recognize the right of Russian citizens to fight Putin’s tyranny with arms. A right you have denied them for so long.
Council of the Free Russia Forum
