COPENHAGEN, 29 December 2023 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Pia Kauma (Finland) and members of the OSCE PA’s Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine today strongly condemned the Russian Federation’s attacks on targets in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and other cities. According to reports, more than 100 missiles were fired against Ukraine, hitting schools, a shopping mall, residential buildings, a commercial storage, and a maternity ward.

“As President of the OSCE PA and Chair of the Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine, I condemn in the strongest terms today’s cowardly and vicious attacks on civilian targets in Ukraine,” President Kauma said. “Using nearly every type of weapon in its arsenal and blatantly violating the laws of war, Russia has destroyed civilian infrastructure and caused many fatalities in one of the largest air attacks since the beginning of the war. There is no justification for such horrific and indiscriminate violence. I extend my heartfelt condolences to those who have lost loved ones and wish a speedy recovery to those who have suffered injuries.”

Kauma added that in the interests of the civilians who are paying the highest price for this war of aggression, the OSCE PA reiterates its demand for the immediate cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine. The OSCE PA’s Parliamentary Support Team for Ukraine stands ready to assist any efforts to resolve the conflict based on OSCE commitments, with full respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, she said.