The Govenment said it was "appalled" by a missile attack launched on civilians fleeing the war in Ukraine. Russia may have committed another war crime by targeting people fleeing from an eastern Ukraine railway station, the Defence Secretary said.
Ben Wallace vowed to “do everything” to ensure Vladimir Putin fails in Ukraine and confirmed Britain will be sending Mastiff armoured vehicles to aid the fight against the Russian President’s forces. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at least 30 people were killed in the attack on the crowded Kramatorsk station that was an evacuation point for civilians.
A further 100 people were injured, Mr Zelensky said as he blamed Russia for “an evil without limits”. The Kremlin has denied targeting the station.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she was “appalled” by the reports, adding: “The targeting of civilians is a war crime. We will hold Russia and Putin to account.” Mr Wallace, visiting Romania for talks, said the strike was a repeat of the Russian president and his generals targeting civilians.
Speaking at a press conference in Constanta, he said: “Not very far away this morning in a place called Kramatorsk, what appear to be Russian missiles struck civilian people queuing for trains to seek a safer place from the war. The striking of civilians and critical infrastructure is a war crime. These were precision missiles aimed at people trying to seek humanitarian shelter.”
Mr Wallace said the sanctions targeting Russia must not be lifted to allow Mr Putin to go back to “his superyachts and normality. He added: "Whatever happens in Ukraine we must not let the international community forget that. What Putin is doing here today is creating his own cage around himself."
The office of Ukraine’s prosecutor-general said about 4,000 civilians were in and around the Kramatorsk station, most of them women and children. The strike came as Moscow was backing down from its attempt to encircle the capital Kyiv and instead trying to take eastern Ukraine.
Pressed if he thinks the station attack was a war crime, Mr Wallace told the press conference that the evidence would be collected to prove the answer, but added: “The circumstantial evidence absolutely points to a range of war crimes being committed by Russia."
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