Some 182,000 Russian war criminals already identified - Anti-Corruption HQ

Serhiy Mytkalyk, chairman of the board at the Anti-Corruption Headquarters NGO, reported on Ukrainian Radio that he and his colleagues employ the tools of journalistic investigations, social networks, and open source intelligence to collect information about the Russian military personnel, who invaded Ukraine, Ukrinform reports.

"We turned the data we had gathered into a register, where you can go and enter someone’s last name, first name, and patronymic and check your relative from Russia. And in this way we identify the Russian military," Mytkalyk said. Activists and journalists also cooperate with the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine. But for obvious reasons, Ukrainian law enforcement cannot currently travel to Russia tp detain suspects. To date, there have been 170 court verdicts handed down against Russian war criminals," Mytkalyk said.

Regarding the dynamics of criminal investigations and court verdicts for war crimes, Mytkalyk noted that "the best punishment today is that delivered by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. And over 300,000 Russian soldiers killed in action, I think, is the best punishment for the invaders."

At the same time, he emphasized that the ultimate goal is to prove in court the crimes committed not only each Russian serviceman involved, but also the Russian political leadership, including President Vladimir Putin, who ordered his troops to go to war with Ukraine.

"We are building up rule of law in Ukraine, and we need to legally prove the crimes of every Russian perpetrator. If we’re set to join the European Union, we need to use only those legal platforms that we consider necessary. And you have to be tolerant, take your time, and have stamina to collect sufficient evidence and prove guilt of not only an average Russian soldier, but also the dictator Putin, who in general masterminded the commission of this crime. I think that through oug joint efforts, we will definitely succeed," said Mytkalyk.

As reported, more than 100,000 criminal proceedings have been initiated for war crimes committed by Russian servicemen on Ukrainian soil.