Ukrainians want justice for Russian abuses. But they sense an era of impunity.
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Howard LaFranchi Staff writer
| Kharkiv, Ukraine
The conditions Ukrainian soldier Oleksandr Kovalchuk experienced at the hands of his Russian captors were bad enough when he was first taken prisoner in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine in April 2022.
But then the Russians discovered that the sexagenarian was born in Russia and had served in the Soviet Army. That made him not just a 鈥渄irty Ukrainian,鈥� in their eyes, but a traitor to Mother Russia.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 when the adventures began,鈥� says Mr. Kovalchuk (not his real surname), relating the swift deterioration in physical and psychological conditions he was subjected to once he was deemed a turncoat.
Why We Wrote This
Ukraine is investigating hundreds of thousands of cases of Russian war crimes and crimes against humanity 鈥� despite a backdrop of growing impunity in the international arena.
What had been occasional beatings became more frequent at the Russian prison where he was held. A much-anticipated daily exposure to fresh air turned into a traumatic encounter with vicious attack dogs.
鈥淭hey beat me with billy clubs until my arms were black,鈥� he says in an expressionless voice. 鈥淭hey put electric wires under my nails and shocked me while yelling 鈥楾raitor!鈥欌��
A single daily meal deteriorated further, often to a wretched broth made of rotten vegetables.
Yet unlike others, Mr. Kovalchuk survived the beatings and torture, the psychological abuse and acute weight loss, until he was released in a prisoner exchange in June 2025.
Now back home in Kharkiv, Mr. Kovalchuk is adding his testimony to the long and growing list of cases of alleged war crimes and human rights abuses committed against Ukrainians 鈥� civilian and military 鈥� by Russia both before and during its invasion in February 2022.
The Ukrainian government says it has registered close to 180,000 claims and verified cases of Russian war crimes and human rights abuses committed over the course of the war.
Those cases range from the high-profile 鈥� the summary executions in Bucha outside Kyiv in 2022, the mass graves of Izium, and the mass abduction of Ukrainian children from occupied territories 鈥� to the increasingly common drone and missile attacks on civilian infrastructure. Widespread but less attention-grabbing cases of military prisoner torture and executions have been recorded as well.
Russia鈥檚 use of drones to terrorize Ukrainian civilians and destabilize communities is an innovation that some legal experts say should be considered a new kind of war crime.
Growing attention is also being paid to the rise of sexual violence against prisoners of war 鈥� including castration 鈥� and whether such treatment constitutes a form of genocide.
Mr. Kovalchuk says he wants to help establish the record and that he hopes to someday see the perpetrators punished.
Along with his son Dmytro 鈥� an army truck driver who was captured and held prisoner for more than three years 鈥� Oleksandr is working with the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG) to establish the record of his imprisonment and abuse.
The two Kovalchuk men are providing testimony and any corroborating documents regarding their experiences. For its part, KHPG, one of a group of Ukrainian organizations compiling war crimes cases, also provides mental health services to its clients.
鈥淲e find that the best way to establish trust with the people who are holding inside very traumatic experiences is to first get them psychological and medical help,鈥� says Tamila Bespala, a lawyer and legal coordinator for KHPG. 鈥淥nly then are we able to build their legal case.鈥�
Both Kovalchuks could become beneficiaries of national war victims compensation funds if their cases are deemed legitimate by authorities. But both men say their ultimate goal is to establish Russia鈥檚 record of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
鈥淚 want the world to know that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is a war criminal, and that the invaders he sends here are inhuman beasts who should be punished for their evil wrongdoing,鈥� says son Dmytro.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 imagine that what happened to me and the worse things that happened to others could just be forgotten,鈥� adds Oleksandr. 鈥淔or the future of our world, criminals like Putin need to be punished.鈥�
Yet Mr. Kovalchuk, who calls himself a 鈥渞ealist,鈥� says he is far from certain the world will ever pursue Russia鈥檚 crimes the way it pursued Nazi crimes after World War II.
If anything, many international affairs analysts say, the world is witnessing a new impunity, especially for the most powerful leaders, as a postwar international justice system erodes in the face of mounting pressure from major powers.
Mr. Putin has responded to his 2023 indictment by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the abduction of Ukrainian children with warrants for the arrest of ICC staff. In December, a Moscow court sentenced ICC prosecutor Karim Khan in absentia to 15 years in prison for 鈥渋llegally鈥� convicting Russian citizens of crimes.
Under President Donald Trump, the United States has repeatedly sanctioned ICC staff members and judges over the court鈥檚 Gaza war crimes investigation and, in particular, over its arrest warrant issued against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mr. Trump included as one point in a recent proposed Ukraine peace plan a full amnesty from prosecution for any war crimes committed in the course of hostilities.
Ms. Bespala, the KHPG lawyer, acknowledges that the 鈥済rowing international impunity鈥� can be disheartening. But she says she can鈥檛 let world politics distract her from the work of establishing a record of war crimes and abuses and helping victims find some sense of justice.
鈥淚 have family members who say, 鈥榃hy do you bother? The world today is never going to do anything about it,鈥欌�� she says. 鈥淏ut I say that doesn鈥檛 mean our work and the people we are helping are not important.鈥�
The mother of one young son says it鈥檚 important the world knows, for example, of Russia鈥檚 increased use of sexual violence and torture against prisoners of war. In compiling cases, KHPG is encountering so many cases of what it says is abuse-induced impotence that the organization is investigating them as a form of genocide.
The recourse to what the U.N. classifies as CRSV 鈥� conflict-related sexual violence 鈥� is something Oleksii Sivak knows about.
When the resident of Kherson in southern Ukraine was detained in September 2022 during Russia鈥檚 occupation for flying a Ukrainian flag over his home, he was subjected to repeated, lengthy beatings. When he was freed after Kherson鈥檚 liberation in November 2022, he discovered that sexual violence against detainees was a common practice.
He also found, when he sought post-traumatic rehabilitation assistance, a nearly complete absence of services specifically for male victims of sexual violence. That prompted him to start an organization focused on what he describes as 鈥渁 tool of torture with a very clear intention.鈥�
By that, he means impotence and sterility.
He recalls the young man who recounted how his torturers were very clear about their objective. 鈥淲hen they finished [their savage beatings], they would say, 鈥楴ow you鈥檙e going to be sterile.鈥欌��
Mr. Sivak says he is also learning through his organization鈥檚 work that the international justice system hardly recognizes the problem.
And while he aims to change that, he also recognizes that the world does not appear to be at a moment of heightened focus on war crimes and human rights abuses.
鈥淚鈥檝e been told I鈥檓 a Don Quixote for pursuing this in our world today,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 think that makes the pursuit of justice useless.鈥�
Oleksandr Nasalenko supported reporting for this story.
