Continuation of the Russo-Ukrainian War: Armed Aggression in the Donbas (2014–2015)

The seizure of Sloviansk by an armed group that had crossed the border, and the formation of the separatist "DNR"/"LNR": the detachment's commander openly admitted that "in practice it was our detachment that set in motion the flywheel of the war that is still going on," and that "it was I, after all, who pulled the trigger of the war"^[2]. In parallel, "groups of armed men unlawfully carried out a well-organized and coordinated seizure of public buildings and police and security service offices"^[1]. The "republic's" leadership was from the outset dispatched from Moscow: "Alexander Boroday - the first prime minister of the DNR, who in 2014 handed over his powers to Alexander Zakharchenko," a Muscovite raised "in an intelligentsia Moscow family"^[5].

A massive campaign of fabricating fakes to dehumanize Ukrainians: on state television it was claimed that "Ukrainian armed forces herded city residents to the central square and publicly executed a small boy and his mother," yet "there is no evidence to support Pyshniak's claim," and the residents of Sloviansk who were interviewed did not confirm the story^[6]. The same method produced the fabricated "death of a 10-year-old girl" in the Petrovskyi district of Donetsk (March 2015): BBC correspondents on the ground established that no such girl had ever existed^[7]. In parallel ran an operation to conceal responsibility for the destruction of flight MH17: the Russian Ministry of Defense "made a series of self-contradictory claims blaming Ukraine, rather than Russia or Russian-led separatists, for the Boeing 777's shoot down," while a deputy defense minister publicly repeated "a fabricated claim that originated on Twitter of how a Spanish air traffic controller named Carlos saw two Ukrainian fighter jets near MH17"^[3].

The use of a hacker group linked to the security services to compromise Ukrainian artillerymen's software: "the filename 'Попр-Д30.apk' was linked to a legitimate application which was initially developed domestically within Ukraine by an officer of the 55th Artillery Brigade named Yaroslav Sherstuk," and "in-depth reverse engineering revealed the APK contained an Android variant of X-Agent" - an implant whose exclusive operator is FANCY BEAR^[8]. The same toolkit was used in cyberattacks on the Ukrainian power grid in the winters of 2015 and 2016^[9][10].

The overt crossing of the state border by regular Russian troops in the summer and autumn of 2014 to save the separatists from defeat: the "DNR" commander admitted that the decisive role was played by Russian servicemen who came "on leave" - "it was mostly 'vacationers' who advanced on Mariupol. When they left, both the front line and the opportunities became precarious"^[2]. The offensive resulted in heavy losses for the Ukrainian army near Ilovaisk and Debaltseve. The presence of regular troops continued into 2015: the GRU men captured near Shchastia were "soldiers of the 3rd Separate Guards Special Purpose Brigade of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, who arrived on the territory of Ukraine on March 26 and were quartered in Luhansk"^[11].

Mass unlawful detentions and abductions of civilians in the occupied territories: "armed groups continued to commit abductions, to subject people to physical and psychological torture and ill-treatment," and "people were abducted for ransom, for forced labor, and for exchange for fighters captured by the Ukrainian authorities"^[1].

The systematic use of torture and physical violence against civilians for a pro-Ukrainian stance: the UN recorded that "armed groups continued to commit abductions, to subject people to physical and psychological torture and ill-treatment, and to commit other grave human rights violations"^[1]. Abducted Automaidan activists were held in a basement where they were "allegedly beaten several times, with their hands bound," and their hair was cut off in reprisal^[12].

The physical elimination of legitimate representatives of local government who resisted the occupation: "the mutilated body of Volodomyr Rybak, a member of the 'Batkivshchyna' party and deputy of the Municipal Council of Horlivka (Donetsk region), was found near the village of Raihorodok," and "Rybak was abducted on April 17 by pro-Russians, following a pro-Ukrainian gathering in Horlivka. He was then tortured and murdered"^[12].

Engagement in combat operations of Russian neo-Nazi groups (such as the "Rusich" sabotage and reconnaissance group under the command of A. Milchakov), whose ringleaders openly called for unmotivated sadistic violence against civilians ("Slaughter the homeless, the puppies, and the children!")^[13].

Targeted cyberattacks by Russian security services on distribution substations of the Ukrainian power grid in the winters of 2015 and 2016, aimed at causing mass power outages for the civilian population^[9][10].

An attempted armed seizure of power in the spring of 2014 by storming regional administrations: the UN recorded that already "in mid-April 2014" "groups of armed men unlawfully carried out a well-organized and coordinated seizure of public buildings and police and security service offices in towns and villages of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions," and "in order to retain control of the seized areas these groups erected barricades and checkpoints"^[1]. In Kharkiv the coup was quickly suppressed.

The instigation of armed clashes in Odesa on May 2, 2014: the UN records the violence committed "in Odesa on 2 May 2014 during clashes between supporters of unity and supporters of the federalization of Ukraine, as a result of which 48 people died, mostly supporters of the country's federalization," and notes that "no one has yet been held to account"^[1]. The culmination was the fire in the Trade Union Building where activists had taken refuge: the UN monitoring mission listed among the key uninvestigated questions "what caused the fire in the Trade Union building" and "who are the perpetrators of the killings"^[14].

The exploitation of the Odesa tragedy to build a state propaganda myth and invert the roles: the actual picture, per the UN, is clashes "between supporters of unity and supporters of the federalization of Ukraine, as a result of which 48 people died," while the investigation remains incomplete and "no one has yet been held to account"^[1]. The tragedy was used as moral justification for further aggression - by the same device as the "crucified boy" fake, for which "there is no evidence to support Pyshniak's claim"^[6].