European Court Holds Russia Accountable for Human Rights Violations in Ukraine and MH17 Tragedy

A leading European court announced on Wednesday that Russia has engaged in extensive human rights abuses in its backing of pro-separatist factions in eastern Ukraine since 2014, including the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 that same year and its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), an entity of the Council of Europe, determined that Russia was liable for “extrajudicial killings of civilians and Ukrainian military personnel” outside of active warfare zones, in addition to “torture,” “forced labor,” “unlawful and arbitrary detention,” and theft.

The 17-judge panel also concluded that Moscow’s actions constituted a violation of human rights by transferring Ukrainian children to Russia, often arranging for their adoption in that country.

The ECHR emphasized that Russia must “immediately” release or safely repatriate all civilians who are unlawfully detained in occupied Ukrainian territories. Furthermore, it urged Moscow to assist in the identification of children relocated from Ukraine prior to September 2022 and to facilitate their reunification with their families.

In response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Wednesday that Russia would disregard the ruling, which it deems “invalid.”

While the decision has significant symbolic weight, it comes after Russia was expelled from the Council of Europe following its large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and subsequently withdrew from the European Convention on Human Rights in September of the same year. Nevertheless, the court continues to address cases pertaining to Russia that were filed before its departure.

The ruling was rendered following four cases: three initiated by Ukraine addressing incidents from 2014 to 2022, and one brought by the Netherlands concerning the MH17 disaster on July 17, 2014. The airplane, which was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was struck down over eastern Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of all 298 individuals aboard.

The UN’s aviation authority has held Russia responsible for the tragedy.

The ECHR also concluded that the anguish experienced by the victims’ families constituted a breach of their right to be free from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment.