Weekly Update #57
April 3

REFUGEE SITUATION

(as of 28 March 2023)

REFUGEE PRESENCE IN EUROPE

(as of 27 March 2023)

THE STATE OF THE CONFLICT

Ukraine Crisis: 11-17 March 2023

CIVILIAN CASUALTIES

(As of  March 26, 2023)

Total civilian casualties from 24 Feb 2022 - 26 March 2023

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has recorded 

22,424 civilian casualties in the country. This included 8,401 killed and 14,023 injured.

• 18.012 casualties (6,520 killed and 11,492 injured) in territory controlled by the Government when casualties occurred)

• 4,412 casualties (1,881 killed and 2,531 injured) in territory occupied by the Russian Federation when casualties occurred:

THE HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

UN Human Rights High Commissioner details severe violations and calls for a just peace

Addressing the 52nd Human Rights Council, the UN Human Rights High Commissioner described in detail key findings of the Human Rights Monitoring Mission.  These included the following:

• Verification of 8,400 civilian deaths and 14,000 wounded, which were just the tip of the iceberg;

• Documentation of numerous summary executions and targeted attacks on civilians, with 621 cases of enforced disappearances;

• Interviews with civilians on torture, including sexual violence, of young boys;

• 109 cases of sexual violence against women, including rape of girls under 18;

• Torture of more than 90% of Ukrainian prisoners of war who had been released and summary execution of a number of them;

He noted that the report includes as well acts of torture perpetrated by Ukrainian military forces.

Source:   OHCHR

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Invocation of the OSCE Moscow Mechanism to Examine Reports of the Russian Federation’s Forcible Transfer and Deportation of Ukraine’s Children

The United States and 44 other countries, with the support of Ukraine, invoked the Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Moscow Mechanism requesting that the OSCE’s Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) establish an expert mission to examine allegations of the forced transfer of children in those parts of Ukraine’s territory temporarily controlled or occupied by Russia, as well as allegations that Ukraine’s children have been deported to the Russian Federation. This expert mission will look into whether such actions and any abuses associated with or resulting from them violate international law, constitute war crimes or crimes against humanity, and/or contravene relevant OSCE commitments. This mission will also be tasked with collecting, consolidating, and analyzing any evidence that could be shared with relevant accountability mechanisms as well as national, regional, or international courts or tribunals that may have jurisdiction.

This invocation follows OSCE’s April and July 2022 Moscow Mechanism Mission Reports, which were requested by the United States and 44 other countries. 

n times of war, children are among the most vulnerable and require special attention and protection. Forcibly transferring or deporting children who have been separated from their families or legal guardians risks exposing them to further abuses. We urge relevant authorities to cooperate fully with the expert mission and facilitate its work. The United States and our partners remain steadfastly committed to supporting Ukraine and holding the Russian Federation to account for its unconscionable abuses.

Source: US DOS Invocation of the OSCE Moscow Mechanism to Examine Reports of the Russian Federation’s Forcible Transfer and Deportation of Ukraine’s Children

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Q&A: Justice Efforts for Ukraine

A Q&A document has been developed to elaborate on further information regarding aspects of the justice response to the Russia-Ukraine war.  The document provides responses to these following questions:

1.  What international humanitarian law and human rights violations have been committed in Ukraine since Russia commenced a full-scale military invasion of the country in February 2022? 

2. Who can be held responsible for violations of international humanitarian law? 

3. Who is primarily responsible for ensuring accountability for serious international crimes? 

4. Have Russian officials prosecuted any individuals for serious crimes under international law in Ukraine? 

5. Have Ukrainian officials prosecuted any individuals for serious crimes in Ukraine? 

6. What support is the Ukrainian criminal justice system receiving to carry out investigations and prosecutions domestically? 

7. Is Ukraine a member of the International Criminal Court? 

8. When did the ICC prosecutor open an investigation into the situation in Ukraine? 

9. Since Russia is not an ICC member country, how is it that the ICC prosecutor investigates allegations against Russian nationals for crimes committed in Ukraine? 

10. How are ICC arrest warrants enforced? 

11. Aren’t heads of state immune from prosecution? 

12. Will the ICC prosecutor bring additional cases in the investigation in Ukraine? 

13. Does the ICC override national authorities in carrying out investigations and prosecutions? 

14. How have governments reacted to the ICC arrest warrants against Putin and Lvova-Belova? 

15. How has the ICC prosecutor’s decision to open a Ukraine investigation impacted the resources available to the court? 

16. Can judicial officials in other countries investigate and prosecute international crimes committed in Ukraine? 

17. Have judicial officials in other countries opened any investigations into serious crimes in Ukraine? 

18. What other international initiatives exist to contribute to criminal justice efforts in Ukraine? 

19. Does Human Rights Watch support the establishment of a tribunal on the crime of aggression? 

20. Would pursuing justice through the ICC or nationally be an obstacle to any peace deal? 

21. What does the unprecedented commitment to accountability for crimes in Ukraine mean for other situations where civilians suffer? 

The attached document provides the answers to these questions.

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OSCE and UN Special Reps statement on trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation and sexual violence in the context of war against Ukraine

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Valiant Richey, and UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, expressed their grave concern about the harm of sexual exploitation, and sexual violence and its cost for the whole of society, as a result of the ongoing war against Ukraine.

Their statement noted that the protracted war in Ukraine has put pressure on the most vulnerable populations.  Consequently, it would be imperative that the humanitarian response should be “accompanied by sustainable solutions that increase societies’ resilience against trafficking in persons, especially women and children, for the purpose of sexual exploitation and sexual violence”.

They highlighted that comprehensive measures would include:  i)  training of law enforcement border guards and security officers to identify and assist victims and potential victims; ii) providing investigators and prosecutors  with adequate resources and information-sharing networks to ensure accountability for trafficking crimes; iii) providing victims with holistic physical, psychological and socio-economic assistance and services to enable rehabilitation and reintregration.

Their statement reiterated the commitment of the OSCE particularly to the Ukrainian crisis – “In response to the increase of trafficking risks and in line with our international, regional and national obligations and commitments, we have a collective responsibility to prevent the current humanitarian crisis turning into a human trafficking crisis. We commit to scaling up and strengthening our actions to enhance the overall response to trafficking in human beings for the purpose of sexual exploitation, and all forms of sexual violence.’

Source:   OSCE

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EIB approves “EU for Ukraine” Initiative to finance Ukraine recovery and reconstruction, and backs transport, energy and business investment around the world

The Board of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) today approved the EU for Ukraine Initiative, a new scheme to finance reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine. The EU for Ukraine Initiative is conceived as a temporary scheme which will enable continued EIB engagement in the country while expected medium term EU support is put in place.

The EIB also agreed EUR 1.8 billion financing for sustainable transport, corporate innovation, clean energy, climate action and digitalisation across Europe and around the world.

As part of the EU for Ukraine Initiative, the EIB will establish the EU for Ukraine Fund to enable European Union member states, the European Commission and other countries and donors to support reconstruction and recovery in Ukraine. The EU for Ukraine Fund will provide credit enhancement to EIB loans for both public and private sector investment.

The EU for Ukraine Initiative will be accompanied by a EUR 100 million dedicated technical assistance package. This will provide best-practice reconstruction advisory expertise in both Ukraine and Moldova and help develop priority investment projects, assisting Ukrainian and Moldovan project promoters facing challenging circumstances.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Kubrakov briefed the EIB Board of Directors on the acute challenges facing Ukraine and outlined the short and medium-term public and private investment priorities in the country. The “EU for Ukraine” initiative follows requests by both the European Council and Ukrainian leaders to rapidly scale-up support for Ukraine’s most urgent infrastructure needs.

The EU for Ukraine initiative will allow the EIB to scale up financing, using contributions from donors, to repair damaged energy and transport networks, back municipal investment to provide services for displaced people and improve access to finance by Ukrainian entrepreneurs in coordination with Ukrainian and international partners.

The new initiative will also enable financing to support restoration of critical infrastructure including energy, transport, health, social services and district heating, cyber security, and business investment.

The EU for Ukraine initiative will support priority reconstruction and recovery investment in sectors identified by the Government of Ukraine, World Bank, European Commission, and United Nations in the second Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment published earlier this month

Source:   EIB approves “EU for Ukraine” Initiative to finance Ukraine recovery and reconstruction, and backs transport, energy and business investment around the world

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EU expands Ukrainian support

The European Union took additional measures to boost its support for Ukraine:

• Application of the EU Temporary Protection Directive (August 2022): the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights has published a report entitled “How do EU countries apply the EU Temporary Protection Directive?” (covering the nine EU Member States with the most significant number of displaced persons fleeing the war in Ukraine (as of July 2022), including the four EU Member States bordering Ukraine.

Source:   https://fra.europa.eu/en/news/2022/how-do-eu-countries-apply-eu-temporary-protection-directive 

• Humanitarian assistance (11 August 2022): The EU has coordinated the delivery of 66,224 tonnes of in-kind assistance to Ukraine from 30 countries via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. The assistance delivered includes 180 ambulances, 125 fire-fighting vehicles, 300 power generators, 35 heavy machinery vehicles, and 4 pontoon bridges. This is by far the largest, longest lasting and most complex operation via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism since it was established in 2001, with an estimated value so far of over €425 million. To support this operation, logistics hubs have been set up in Poland, Romania and Slovakia where assistance is then chanelled directly to Ukraine.

Source:    https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_4945 

• Medical evacuations of Ukrainian patients (5 August 2022): the EU has successfully coordinated 1,000 medical evacuations of Ukrainian patients via its Civil Protection Mechanism to provide them with specialised healthcare in hospitals across Europe.

Source:   https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_22_4882 

• EU regions and cities organising summer camps for Ukrainian children (22 July 2022):

     Source:   https://cor.europa.eu/en/news/Pages/Summer-camps.aspx 

• Urgent temporary measures for Ukrainian driver documents (07 July 2022):

The legislative proposal is linked to the reception of Ukrainian refugees and aims at reducing the administrative requirements normally applying to third country drivers when driving within the EU. This innovative measure alleviates the administrative burden on Ukrainian refugees as regards driving documents and, at the same time, provides a harmonised approach for the duration of temporary protection.

Source:   https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/07/07/the-council-and-the-parliament-launch-urgent-temporary-measures-for-ukrainian-driver-documents/ 

• Reconstruction of Ukraine (30 June 2022): The European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine was launched by the CoR and its partners, including EU and Ukrainian associations of local and regional authorities, to coordinate their joint efforts directed towards helping the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.

Source:   https://cor.europa.eu/en/engage/Pages/European-Alliance-of-Cities-and-Regions-for-the-reconstruction-of-Ukraine.aspx?origin=spotlight 

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Additional Assistance from Japanese Government for Recovery and Reconstruction in Ukraine 

The Government of Japan announced it is providing two grant aid projects for recovery and reconstruction in Ukraine.

1. Grant Aid to Ukraine “the Programme for Emergency Recovery Phase 2”

(1) On March 29, 2023, H.E. Mr. MATSUDA Kuninori, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Ukraine and H.E. Mr. Oleksandr Kubrakov, Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration of Ukraine and Minister for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine signed and exchanged notes for the Grant Aid “the Programme for Emergency Recovery Phase 2” (grant amount 53.072 billion yen (400 million US dollars) in Kyiv, Ukraine.

(2) This cooperation will provide the Government of Ukraine, which has been suffering from Russia’s aggression, with equipment necessary for （1）mine action and debris clearance, which are prerequisites for recovery and reconstruction, （2）livelihood reconstruction including the provision of basic infrastructure, （3）recovery of agriculture as a key industry and （4）strengthening democracy and governance. This will thereby contribute to the rapid recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine.

2. Support to Critical Energy Infrastructure Restoration and Immediate Provision of Energy Equipment in Ukraine

(1) On March 28, 2023, the Government of Japan decided to extend Grant Aid of 70 million US dollars as support for recovery and reconstruction in Ukraine through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

(2) This project will support restoration of energy infrastructures damaged by Russian attacks, and thereby will contribute to recovering and enhancing power supply to Combined Heat and Power Plants (CHPs) which provide Ukrainian people with electricity, heat and water.

3. These support will embody the new additional grant aid of 470 million US dollars, announced by Prime Minister Kishida during his visit to Ukraine on March 21. Japan expressed its continued support to 1.   people of Ukraine who are facing hardship, in collaboration with the international community, including the G7 members.

Source: Govt. Japan

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Generators and transformers offered to Ukraine

As Russia continues to destroy the energy infrastructure of Ukraine, generators and transformers are urgently needed.  Humanitarian partners and donors have placed these as priorities in order to provide heating to the general population.

The map below shows the European countries that have included generators and transformers in their aid to Ukraine.