Russia Calls for Impartial Review of UN Human Rights Data on Ukraine

Dragon Media Newsroom

Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large Rodion Miroshnik has questioned the UN Human Rights Office’s methods for collecting and verifying data on Ukraine, calling for an open discussion among governments.

Speaking with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk at a meeting of the Third Committee of the 81st UN General Assembly on Oct. 14, Miroshnik said the office was not providing what he considered an impartial, evidence-based assessment of events. He alleged that data verification was being left to third parties and that conclusions were then drawn from distorted information.

Miroshnik said civilian casualties on the Russian side were being overlooked. He also challenged the office’s attribution of nine out of ten cases of conflict-related sexual violence to Russia, saying the conclusion lacked a basis. He described reports by the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine as unreliable and alleged that the mission relied exclusively on information from Kyiv and received funding from Western donors.

According to figures cited by Miroshnik, Ukrainian attacks since 2022 have caused more than 36,400 civilian casualties, including 9,141 deaths. He said Russia was prepared to substantiate the figures.

Miroshnik urged an open intergovernmental discussion on how the UN, particularly the Human Rights Office, collects and verifies data. He said such a discussion could help restore countries’ confidence in the high commissioner and his office.