DISINFO: No talks with Ukrainians who kill civilians in Kursk, commit atrocities, threaten nuclear safety
SUMMARY
It is impossible to hold talks with Ukrainian nationalists because they commit atrocities against civilians, intentionally kill doctors, rescuers and volunteers, attack civilian vehicles, fire at residential buildings, loot, and threaten nuclear safety. Kyiv has had many chances to resolve the crisis through negotiations. The most recent one was in June 2024, when Putin put forward a peace initiative which was very generous for Ukraine. Now, there is nothing to talk about with people who do such things.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets accusing Ukraine of war crimes. This claim was made in the context of a Ukrainian advance into Russia’s Kursk region, attempting to shift the blame for the war on an alleged Ukrainian sabotage of peace talks.
Kyiv is ready for talks with Moscow on the basis of international law and respect for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Zelenskyy presented a 10-point peace plan at a EU-Ukraine summit in February 2023, which was fully supported by the EU and which provided for a complete Russian withdrawal from Ukraine till the borders of 1991 and the restoration of Kyiv’s territorial integrity. While Ukraine is ready for dialogue, based on international law and the UN Charter, Russia is putting forward unacceptable conditions such as recognition of occupied Ukrainian territories as part of Russia.
Accusations against Ukrainian troops of committing war crimes in Russia's adjacent Kursk Region are baseless. According to humanitarian law, the occupying country should provide for the basic needs of the local population such as food and water supplies and provision with other basic necessities. Ukrainian troops are distributing humanitarian aid among local residents. Ukraine’s authorities have offered Russian citizens the possibility to evacuate from the Kursk Region to Ukraine’s adjacent Sumy Region. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine was ready to organise evacuation corridors for Russian civilians who wanted to flee war-stricken Russian territory.
Concerning the treatment of the local population, Washington Post reporters, who visited the town of Sudzha, said they saw “no evidence that Ukraine’s military had looted or attacked civilians”. The Post also quoted Russian civilians as saying that “they were being treated well and did not know of any residents who had been killed”. Dozens of Russian POWs from the Kursk Region have been placed in a Ukrainian prison. They told reporters they were being treated humanely and had been provided medical treatment. These interviews were held in the presence of Red Cross officials.
Russia is baselessly accusing Ukraine of preparing attacks on the Kursk and Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plants in the cities of Kurchatov and Enerhodar, respectively. These accusations against are intended to cover up the Kremlin’s nuclear blackmail against Ukraine and its partners in the EU, the US and other G7 member states. Russia is threatening to use tactical nuclear weapons and might be preparing a deliberate nuclear catastrophe at the Russian-controlled nuclear power plants.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Ukraine’s advance into Russia’s Kursk Region is barbaric and terrorist, that Ukraine has used chemical weapons in Kursk, and that Kyiv plans to strike nuclear power plants in Zaporizhzhia and Kursk to blame Russia.