On 24 February 2022, the world watched in disbelief as Vladimir Putin launched an illegal and groundless large-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Series of war crimes

One year on, the horror and disbelief are mixed with anger and sorrow. At the senseless loss of tens of thousands of Ukrainian and Russian lives. At the callous disregard of all the ways in which it will affect food supply for millions of people, including some of the poorest countries in the world. At the merciless destruction of homes, schools, hospitals, the civilian infrastructure, even churches and the Holocaust victim memorials. At the mass cruelty and extreme brutality of some of the forces acting on Putin’s behalf. At the kidnappings and deportation of Ukrainian children and the looting of property and cultural heritage.

In other words, at a series of war crimes.

At the same time, we have seen the lies and the manufacturing of misinformation – largely intended for the Russian populace, which must not even whisper the word “war” without fear of getting arrested. We have heard the nonsensical ramblings of the commentators from the Russian state television, trying to justify the indefensible and explain the unexplainable.

Vladimir Putin promised a three-day “special military operation" aimed at removing a non-existent threat and “denazifying” an independent state led by a democratically elected president (who happens to be Jewish), who he did not like.

nlo.jpg
Shutterstock, Printscreen Instagram/jeremycorbell 

Putin made a total miscalculation. And he knows it. This is the reason why he keeps changing narratives and reorganizing his military command. This is why he has mobilized a generation that the future of his country depends upon. This is why he has been relying on criminal paramilitary formations recruited in prisons. And instead of stopping this madness in order to save Russian and Ukrainian lives, he continues to push his country deeper into the abyss.

We salute the people in Russia who have bravely and publicly stood against Putin’s war. This war is a disaster for Russia itself too. It is destroying the Russian Armed Forces, its economy, and its reputation. Generations and generations will have to work to repair the damage inflicted and bring Russia back into mainstream international relations and its citizens to normal lives.

Still, it is the Ukrainian people that is suffering the most and that needs help the most.

A senseless war

It is precisely for this reason that countries, including Serbia, provide help to the refugees from Ukraine and send medical aid and help with energy sources. It is for this reason that a great many countries, including our own, send military equipment to Ukraine so that it could defend itself, in line with the provisions of international law. It is precisely for this reason that practically all European countries and other important international partners have imposed sanctions in order to weaken the ability of the Kremlin to wage this senseless war.

3332456-zelenskiap02ap-ff.jpg
AP 

In January, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we paid our respects to the victims of the mass repression during World War II, remembering that the world had said – never again. There is no place in Europe which, like the Western Balkans, lives the legacy of a conflict that continues to poison lives. And now, again, through Vladimir Putin’s barbaric and illegal war, we in the 21st century look at how far the inhumanity of one human being towards another goes on the European continent.

We are looking back on the previous year with anger and sorrow. We appeal to all those who despise suffering and destruction, want peace and safety in Europe, and wish the peoples of Ukraine and Russia well, including those who serve the Russian state or have an impact on it. We call on them to do everything in their power to convince the Kremlin to withdraw its troops from Ukraine and stop this horrific war, so that both nations could live in peace and start to rebuild their future.

This article is authored by the Ambassadors to Serbia of Canada (Giles Norman), Norway (Jørn Eugene Gjelstad), Poland (Rafał Perl), and the United Kingdom (Sian MacLeod)