Russia does not have the right to unilaterally attack another country and therefore bears full responsibility “for these acts of military aggression and for all the destruction and loss of life it causes,” said the EU foreign policy chief. The perpetrators of these war crimes would be held accountable, as would the government officials and army leaders responsible, he warned.
Following the Russian attack on a clearly marked theater used as a shelter for civilians in Mariupol, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov had previously called on the EU to label Russian leader Vladimir Putin as a “war criminal” and step up arms supplies to his country. US President Joe Biden even called Putin a “murderous dictator” because of the Russian attacks on cities in Ukraine.
According to Ukrainian sources, Russia bombed the theater in Mariupol on Wednesday, even though the word “Children” in Russian was prominently painted on the floor in front of both sides of the building. The eXXpress reported. Hundreds of civilians seeking protection are said to have stayed in the theater at the time of the attack.
Russia had denied the attack on the theater. As with the attacks on a maternity hospital in Mariupol last week, Moscow said the explosion was caused by the nationalist Ukrainian Azov Brigade.
