Ukraine has criticized Russia for its plans to withdraw from the Council of Europe Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, saying the proposal is a tacit admission of guilt by Moscow, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of war crimes and torture of civilians and prisoners of war since the start of a full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. Russia denies the accusations.
A Russian government website shows that on Monday the government announced plans to withdraw from the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, signed by Moscow in 1996 d.
"This step is effectively an admission of guilt for systematic torture and an attempt to evade responsibility for gross human rights violations," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Russian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Moscow's decision must be approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin and passed by a vote in parliament before it can take effect, the website said.
In March, a UN commission said that Russia's "widespread and systematic" use of enforced disappearances and torture of Ukrainians during the war in Ukraine constituted a crime against humanity.
The Netherlands and 40 other member states of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have also called for an independent investigation into allegations of torture and ill-treatment of Ukrainian prisoners of war by Russian forces.