Holding Russian soldiers to account for war crimes is a vital deterrent

Editorial: A month-long investigation by The Independent has revealed evidence of possible war crimes in Ukraine

The evidence, collected by free media and international institutions, suggests that war crimes have been committed (AFP/Getty)

We are proud of the painstaking reporting by Bel Trew, our international correspondent, of the evidence of potential Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Not just because we believe in truth, openness and unflinchingly honest reporting for its own sake, but because holding Russian soldiers and politicians to account for war crimes is an important deterrent.

No doubt there are terrible things done on both sides, as is inevitable in war, but the more we report what is actually happening in Ukraine, the clearer it is for the world to see that one side is more in the wrong than the other. Vladimir Putin is engaged in a war of aggression, for conquest and territory, in defiance of international law, and contrary to the right of the Ukrainian people to self-determination.

The evidence, collected by free media and international institutions, suggests that war crimes have been committed and that they are more likely to have been committed by Russian forces. We know that, even though Russia is increasingly a closed society, its citizens still have access to the outside world’s media, and many of its soldiers, concerned for their own survival, make it their business to know what non-Russian observers are saying about their situation and their conduct of the war.