We are negotiating with war criminals

We find ourselves in the fact that President Zelensky from Ukraine recently foster The “misinformation bubble” about the war in Ukraine, so it may be time for cold, difficult facts – what the military can call “BFO”, a dazzling outburst of the obvious. Volodymyr Putin began this war in Ukraine, starting a unobstructed invasion. For three years of this conflict, the Russian forces deliberately committed documented war crimes. And all the Kremlin – now helped some in the United States – continues to spread propaganda to mask the truth. From deliberate civilian infrastructure bombardment to massacre in such places Bush Before the abduction of Ukrainian children, Evidence of war crimes is extraordinary. And we negotiate with them.

By conducting a unobstructed and cruel campaign of destruction, the Russians actively gained some to support their history of this conflict through large -scale messaging campaigns, trying to silence anyone who dares to expose their cruelty due to intimidation.

Some attempts to promote its message and silence its enemies – especially in Russia – were more sophisticated than others. For example, I traveled to Russia several times, and even once invited to speak at the famous Voroshilov Academy of their military. Then, in May 2022, Russia posted a list 963 Americans (and several Canadians) were forbidden to enter this country forever. I was on this list. Until I was surprised – I really considered this honor – it was difficult to understand why some of the others were included: Morgan Fryman, Mark Zerberg, Lloyd Austin, the first lady of Canada Sophie Trudeau and even a few dead people. Perhaps the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs worried that John McCain would tell the truth about the “special military operation” of the Russian people from the grave.

Maybe I was on this list thanks to my comments in the media. In several cable news, I described the videos that I saw about Russian forces on advanced lines and easy to watch war crimes. Although I am not a lawyer, I was a soldier, and like all American soldiers, I studied what I didn’t do in battle. Due to the basic training, accession of officers and careers of any duration, the US military receive a strict education on the laws of war and Geneva conventions. All troops learn about compliance with the rules of involvement, treatment of prisoners of war, a ban on torture and the difference between combatants and civilians. Particular emphasis is placed on the General Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions that prohibit torture and ill -treatment, Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits compulsory deportations, and Article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the destruction of civil property without military need. Officers and sergeants receive additional command and responsibility training and responsibility, and the judge’s lawyer, the general officers provide constant legal supervision of commanders, ensuring compliance with the Unified Code of Military Justice of the United States and International Humanitarian Law.

When US soldiers break any of these limits, they are responsible. But after watching films about Russian tactics, I saw illegal actions performed by soldiers who seem to have little to study or have any responsibility from any level of leadership.

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“War Crimes” is a legal term, but it is also used spoken. To illustrate the types of abuse that our new interlocutors have been committed, here are five examples related to specific articles of the law, the volume and scale of offenses committed since February 2022:

• Estimates indicate that almost 20,000 Ukrainian children Forcibly delivered to Russia since the beginning of the invasion in 2022. These actions are a war crime in accordance with Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the violent transfer of protected persons from the occupied territories. The deportation of children with the intention to remove them from the country forever violates international humanitarian legislation.

• The Russian forces deliberately focused on civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, schools and energy institutions. One of the last prominent cases occurred on Christmas Day 2024When Russia began serious shelling for numerous Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure, which led to significant power outages throughout the country. Such attacks violate Article 53 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits the destruction of property, not justified by military necessity. These actions against the main services are a sign of all stages of the three -year campaign of Russia, intended to terrorize the civilian population, and they are a serious violation of international law.

• Russian rocket and pipe artillery is also without the analysis of densely populated civilian areas, which leads to a significant loss of life and property. For example, in August 2024 Russian bomb attack Kharkiv has led to at least eight deaths and tens, including children. This violates Article 51 of the additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions. The lack of a difference between military and civilian goals ignores the principles of proportionality and differences in armed conflict.

• Russian soldiers are repeatedly accused of ill -treatment and Performing Ukrainian prisoners of warwith different films showing their specific actions. Such actions violate the Third Geneva Convention, in particular Articles 13 and 14, which provide for humane treatment of prisoners of war to protect them from violence and intimidation. There were also hundreds accusation Russian forces engaged in torture and inhumane treatment of detainees, including beating, electrical blows and layout executions. Such actions violate the General Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. The report of abuse of prisoners and civilians in the occupied territories reflects the flashy disdain for human dignity and international legal standards.

• There is a documented broad sexual violence committed by the Russian forces against Ukrainian civilians and detainees. The UN has checked More than ninety cases of sexual violence in the occupied Russian areas that affect victims from 4 to 80 years. Thousands of cases are likely to be less accessible. These actions include rapes, forced nakedness and other forms of sexual abuse, which are often used as a war weapon to instill fear and exercise control over the population. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that detained in Russian controlled areas are ill -treatment, including sexual violence as a form of torture. These violations were recognized as war crimes and crimes against humanity, which encourage calls for international accountability and support of survivors.

• In the occupied regions, Russian forces have Forced Ukrainian civilians join the Rosiian police. Forcing people to participate in their own country under coercion undermine their rights and violate international law – a sheet of 51 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

• Russian forces also have Occupied starvation as a method of war by destroying food and locking humanitarian aid. These actions violate Article 54 of the additional protocol I to the Geneva Conventions, which specifically condemns, depriving civilians who have significant nutrition.

These are just examples of indiscriminate attacks on civilian infrastructure, illegal delays and wide reports of human rights violations. People who represent the nation who have committed these war crimes sit through the table from the Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Michael Walsa, discussing diplomacy with the hope of helping from destructive sanctions and ending the conflict they began, all continuing Ukraine. US officials, after their initial negotiations in Saudi Arabia, focused on three main purposes: the restoration of diplomatic relations between our two countries, the establishment of negotiations and the planning of post -war cooperation.

Those who were cruelty – civilians who tortured in the occupied territories, kidnapped children, executed prisoners of war – not in the room. Although diplomacy is necessary to stop any conflict, it should not come for the price of the disabled reality of Russian aggression and the continuous commission of war crimes. Despite the fact that these negotiations can lead to a temporary ceasefire, between the perpetrators of these crimes and victims who showed the world readiness to reflect.