Supreme Rada specifies “date of Russian-Ukrainian war”

The Supreme Rada of Ukraine has passed a statement on “repelling of Russia’s armed aggression.”  The document was passed by 259 votes while the minimum number of votes required to pass the statement was 226.

“It is the first consolidated document of the Ukrainian parliament to show the chronology of the Ukraine-Russia conflict. It is the first legal document to determine the date of the Russian-Ukrainian War,” Parliament's Vice Speaker Oksana Syroid said while introducing the document.

An explanatory note says the document looks to "create legal grounds for submitting a consolidated claim to the Russian Federation over the armed aggression against Ukraine." The document demands Russia to “immediately free all POWs and hostages, pull back of the armed forces from the territory of Ukraine, implement the Minsk agreements ensuring Ukraine’s full control over the state border and OSCE’s permanent monitoring of the Russian-Ukrainian border, immediately return the annexed territories of Crimea, immediately stop movement of humanitarian convoys accross the state border of Ukraine, withdraw Russia’s Armed Forces from the border, bring responsible the persons behind the organization and launch of the aggression against Ukraine and other crimes and crimes against humanity.”

“In case of Russia’s refusal to stop the armed aggression against Ukraine, the Supreme Rada calls on the world community to toughen the sanction against Russia as ‘an aggressor country’ and step up financial support and arms delivery to Ukraine, considering that the country is repelling Russia’s armed aggression,” runs the document.