Russia’s answer to EU human rights verdict reveals Putin’s true intentions – We Got This Covered

In a major decision, Europe’s highest human rights court has ruled unanimously that Russia is responsible for multiple human rights violations in Ukraine and for the devastating crash of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 in 2014.

This ruling is the first time an international court has clearly stated that Russian forces committed widespread human rights abuses in Ukraine and directly blamed Moscow for the MH17 disaster.

The detailed decision covers more than ten years of violations, describing a disturbing pattern of illegal actions by Russian government agents and groups linked to them. According to Reuters, the European Court of Human Rights, based in Strasbourg, carefully reviewed evidence from four combined cases and found Russia guilty of a long list of abuses, detailed by AP News.

Despite the seriousness of the ruling, Russia’s response was cold and dismissive. Before the decision was announced, a Kremlin spokesperson said clearly that Russia would not follow any rulings from the court, calling them “meaningless.”

Russia doesn’t care that it keeps making human rights violations

These violations include uncontrolled military attacks, the killing of civilians without fair trials, and cases of torture, including the horrific use of rape as a weapon of war. The court also noted the forced movement of civilians and other serious human rights violations. The evidence presented showed a clear pattern of illegal behavior by Russian-backed groups, including their military, occupation authorities, and separatist forces, across large parts of Ukraine.

One of the four key cases focused on the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17. The Boeing 777, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur in July 2014, was hit by a missile over eastern Ukraine during fighting between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists. All 298 people on board died, most of them Dutch citizens. The court’s decision clearly states that Russia was responsible for this attack. It also criticized Russia for not properly investigating the incident, refusing to share information, and failing to provide justice for the victims’ families.

The court said Russia’s refusal to cooperate and its continued denial of involvement made the suffering of the victims’ relatives even worse. The other three cases in the ruling were brought by Ukraine. They included accusations that pro-Russian separatists kidnapped groups of Ukrainian children and took them to Russia, as well as broader human rights violations during Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. The court ruled that Russia’s actions broke international humanitarian law in all four cases.

Russia’s defiant attitude matches its past actions; it was kicked out of the Council of Europe in 2022 after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and its government later voted in 2023 to reject the authority of the European Court of Human Rights. As a result, even though the court’s rulings are legally binding for member countries, it has no way to force Russia to obey since Russia no longer recognizes its power. This makes the decision mostly symbolic when it comes to immediate punishment.

Russia will continue with its drone attacks and threatening countries who supply aid. Still, the ruling is important for the victims and the international community. The Dutch Foreign Minister praised the decision, saying he hoped it would bring some justice and recognition to those affected, even if it could not take away their pain.