Geneva conventions, signed on 12 August 1949, prohibit the use of methods or means of warfare aimed at causing extensive, long-term and serious damage to the natural environment. The military conflict unleashed by Kiev authorities in Donbass, entails the daily destruction of environment of the Donetsk region, its infrastructure and natural resources.
Article 55 of the Protocol Additional to the said Conventions indicates that Care shall be taken in warfare to protect the natural environment. This protection includes a prohibition of the use of methods or means of warfare which are intended or may be expected to cause such damage to the natural environment and thereby to prejudice the health or survival of the population.
Unfortunately, the Ukrainian side does not bother itself to enforce the international humanitarian law. Constant attacks against industrial enterprises, which our region is famous with, from the Ukrainian side not only has economic consequences, but also poses a threat to the environmental situation in the Republic.
The fire of the Ukrainian forces against the Donetsk State-owned Plant of Chemical products and constant shelling of Donetsk Filtering Station, where the chlorine is stockpiled, cause fears of possible deterioration of the ecological situation in the region.
On 13 February the UN Security Council adopted a resolution aimed at preventing terrorist attacks against important infrastructure facilities at an open meeting, chaired by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The resolution calls upon Member States to criminalize terrorist acts aimed at destruction or decontamination of vital infrastructure facilities, as well as planning, training, financing and logistical support of such attacks.
It is noteworthy that the initiators of this resolution represent the state that destroys the infrastructure of the Donbass by terrorist methods.
Thus, by all its actions the Ukrainian side demonstrates that it is not interested in an the earliest settlement of the conflict in Donbass, on the contrary, our opponents aim at unleashing large-scale military operations.
Being the DPR Ombudsman, I defend the rights of our citizens and my goal is to create favorable living conditions in our state.
I want to recall the norms of the international humanitarian law, which provide for protection of natural environment from extensive, long-term and serious damage during the warfare. I would like to emphasize that civilian objects are not to be subject to armed attacks, as stipulated in Article 51 of the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Convention of 1949. Once again, aggressive methods of conducting military operations used by the Ukrainian side contradict all norms of international humanitarian law.
