The world is demanding justice following the shocking images of carnage discovered when Ukraine liberated Bucha on April 2.

The human and humanitarian tragedy is growing every day, every hour.

Yesterday was surely one of the saddest days of the war after Russia bombed a children’s and maternity hospital in Mariupol.

There are no credible explanations and no justifications for these actions. There is no “special military operation,” only a naked war of aggression. 

Facts matter. That has been the motto of the SMM. And OSCE commitments matter. And international law obligations matter. No amount of lies can make facts disappear or hide the bloody results of Russia’s aggression.

Today, our delegations will send the following letter to ODIHR Director Matteo Mecacci, invoking the Moscow Mechanism, with the support of Ukraine

The courage and determination of Ukrainians to live in freedom, to defend their homeland against a foreign invader, has only grown as the Russian offensive has intensified and become more bloody and barbaric.

This is a dark time, but when the fog of war clears, individuals will be held responsible.  We are also taking note of all those enabling this war, including the regime in Belarus, and they too will be held to account. 

Russia’s actions are an affront to democracy, to human rights, to human decency. 

Make no mistake: Yesterday’s actions are the beginning of the latest Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This is the most significant military mobilization in Europe since the Cold War.

We recommend that Russia immediately de-escalate its military posture in and around Ukraine by withdrawing its troops and equipment and fulfilling in good faith its Minsk Agreement obligations.

We need to address the escalating situation in the context of the principles and commitments at the heart of the OSCE.

The United States and our Allies and partners are unified in our preference for constructive and serious diplomacy, including here at the OSCE. 

Ukraine’s concern regarding Russian military activities and intentions today is unfortunately grounded in recent history.

This crisis is much bigger than Ukraine.  This is about the type of world we want to live in.

The mandate of the Project Coordinator in Ukraine applies to the entire territory of Ukraine within its international recognized borders, including Crimea. 

Russia bears responsibility for every casualty on both sides of the Line of Contact.  Its aggression against Ukraine is the sole driver of the daily violence that causes these tragedies. 

I just wanted to remind my esteemed Russian colleague that Moscow committed to all three of the Minsk agreements: the Minsk Protocol, signed September 5, 2014; the Minsk Memorandum of Understanding, signed September 19, 2014; and the Minsk Package of Measures, signed February 12, 2015, since you wanted us to talk about documents.

Although Russia tries to cast itself as a mere “mediator” in this conflict, Moscow unceasingly obstructs the paths to resolution.

Rather than pursue a serious effort to resolve the conflict it began, Russia doubled down on its same tired lines, denying its role as the aggressor and spinning fantasies about “foreign masters” and “coups d’état”.

Let’s be clear about why we discuss this conflict every Thursday.  It is because Russia and the forces it arms, trains, leads, and fights alongside have fueled this terrible situation in eastern Ukraine for more than seven years. 

Significant numbers of Russian military forces remain in place along the Russia-Ukraine border, in Russia-occupied Crimea, and in eastern Ukraine along the Line of Contact within Ukraine.

Although Russia has removed certain forces and hardware from these areas, its military posture remains significantly heightened.