COPENHAGEN, 8 July 2024 – The President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Pia Kauma (Finland) made the following statement today: 

“We are deeply appalled by the latest missile attacks conducted by Russia on 8 July against Ukraine. The targeting of civilian infrastructure, especially the Okhmatdyt children’s clinic in Kyiv, which was badly hit, is a particularly heinous act. Attacks on hospitals, which serve as sanctuaries for the most vulnerable, including children, constitute blatant violations of international humanitarian law and human rights.

These indiscriminate strikes, resulting in the tragic loss of civilian lives and severe damage to essential infrastructure, achieve nothing but senseless violence and destruction. The casualties underscore the devastating human cost of these attacks, with innocent lives lost and countless others forever altered.

We strongly condemn this barbaric assault on the people of Ukraine and call on the Russian Federation to immediately cease these attacks and adhere to its obligations under international law. The continued targeting of civilians and critical infrastructure must stop. The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly stands firmly with Ukraine and remains committed to supporting its people during these terrifying times.”

The deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure was also condemned in the strongest terms in the Bucharest Declaration adopted last week by the Assembly at its 31st Annual Session.