The brutal truth behind Russia’s execution of Ukrainian POWs: motives, patterns, and the road to justice

This is not an isolated case. The execution of Ukrainian POWs has become a brutal hallmark of Russia’s war strategy, reinforcing a pattern of torture, mass killings, and absolute disregard for international law. The numbers tell a grim story: a 2024 Amnesty International report documented at least 109 executions of Ukrainian POWs that year alone. Since the full-scale invasion began, the number has approached 200 confirmed cases—and that’s only what has been verified. The true scale could be far worse.

The brutality doesn’t stop at executions. Survivors rescued from Russian captivity have recounted stories of torture, electric shocks, sexual violence, severe beatings, amputations and forced confessions. Some have returned with permanent disfigurement. 

The cruelty extends beyond soldiers. Civilians across Ukraine endure relentless missile strikes, executions, and forced deportations. In March 2025, a Russian strike on Kryvyi Rih, just hours after Ukraine had agreed to a U.S.-proposed ceasefire, killed a woman and injured nine others. In Odesa, Russian forces targeted a grain vessel, killing four people, including Syrian nationals.

Mass killings have become routine. In October 2023, Russian troops executed a family of nine in Volnovakha after they refused to surrender their home. Deportations continue—tens of thousands of Ukrainian children have been taken to Russia for "re-education."

Sexual violence is systematic, targeting men, women, and even children. Meanwhile, Russia’s destruction of Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure continues. Power plants, electric grids, and water facilities have been relentlessly attacked, plunging civilians into darkness during the bitter cold of winter. The World Health Organization (WHO) has documented over a thousand attacks on medical facilities, turning hospitals into war zones and medical workers into frontline casualties.

But why does Russia resort to such ruthless violence against both prisoners and civilians? What purpose does this brutality serve in a war where international law, at least in theory, is meant to protect both POWs and non-combatants?

A system of brutality: Understanding Russian motives

The execution of Ukrainian prisoners of war is not just a battlefield atrocity—it is a calculated strategy deeply embedded in Russia’s military traditions, psychological conditioning, and propaganda-driven dehumanization. These killings are not random acts of violence but serve distinct military and political objectives. Their systematic nature reflects a broader cultural and institutional acceptance of brutality, where violence is not merely a tool of war but a core principle of Russia’s military doctrine and social order. This strategy serves several purposes.

First, psychological warfare. By executing prisoners on camera, Russia sends a message to Ukrainian troops: resistance means death. This fear-driven tactic aims to break morale, ensuring that Ukrainian forces fight to the death rather than risk being captured. The execution of Oleksandr Matsievskyi in December 2022 is a chilling example. In a widely circulated video, he stood unarmed, cigarette in hand. His last words: “Slava Ukraini.” A burst of gunfire followed. His execution was designed to spread terror, not just among Ukrainian soldiers, but among civilians supporting the resistance.

Second, revenge and punishment. Russia has repeatedly used POWs as scapegoats following Ukrainian military victories. After Ukraine’s counteroffensives in Kharkiv and Kherson, the execution of captured soldiers surged in Russian-occupied areas. The Olenivka Prison Massacre in July 2022 remains one of the most shocking cases—more than 50 Ukrainian POWs, primarily Azov fighters, were killed in a premeditated explosion inside a Russian-run facility. Investigations confirmed this was no battlefield accident but a deliberate mass execution.

Third, Russia seeks to fuel and provoke global violence and chaos. By flagrantly violating international humanitarian law, Moscow has, paradoxically, developed an interest in seeing Ukrainian soldiers respond in kind. A higher level of brutality from the other side would help mask its own atrocities. By breaking both written and unwritten rules, Russia becomes the beneficiary of dismantling established norms and limitations. This, in turn, serves as evidence of a ‘world governed by ruthless cruelty’, reinforcing the notion that no other way is possible.

This ideas stem from deep-seated historical trauma. For centuries, Russians have lived under oppressive rulers, enduring cruelty and humiliation. Never truly free, they have learned to channel their frustration into hatred toward those who dare to break free. Ukraine, by choosing democracy, became an unbearable affront—a nation of free people that "had to be punished."

Beneath this systematic brutality lies a deeper cultural phenomenon—dehumanization. Russian propaganda, state-controlled media, and military doctrine have spent years conditioning Russian soldiers to see Ukrainians not as fellow human beings, but as enemies unworthy of mercy. They are painted as Nazis, extremists, or traitors—labels that justify their execution. Russian state TV openly celebrates the abuse of POWs, with propagandists declaring they "don’t deserve to live." Pro-Kremlin military bloggers go even further, glorifying beheadings and executions on Telegram.

The Wagner Group—Russia’s most infamous paramilitary force—has taken this sadism to extremes, executing prisoners with sledgehammers and proudly posting the footage as propaganda.

Elena Gribanova, a crisis psychologist with the Kharkiv Human Rights Group, has analyzed the psychological impact of Russian brutality, particularly why Russian soldiers seem to take sadistic pleasure in executing captives.

"This is not just about violence," she explains. "This is about power, about control. I see that this violence borders on sadism. I am very interested in where these demons come from—what kind of unconscious forces drive them? Because when you see a person being mutilated, when you see this kind of calculated cruelty, you have to ask: why?"

She outlines three core reasons why Russian soldiers commit such systematic acts of cruelty:

• Compensation for Personal Inferiority – Many of these men come from broken communities, lacking education or purpose. Violence becomes a means of asserting dominance over those they perceive as stronger or better than them.

• Excessive Authority Without Boundaries – Russian soldiers are given unchecked power, told they can kill without consequence. This removes all moral restraints.

• Propaganda-Induced Pseudo-Greatness – Years of Russian state propaganda have fed them nationalistic lies, convincing them that they are the rightful rulers of Ukraine and that Ukrainians are nothing more than obstacles in their way.

Human rights activist Alexandra Matviychuk, head of the Center for Civil Liberties, highlights the real issue behind this impunity: Russia has never been punished for its war crimes. The executions of Ukrainian POWs are not happening in isolation—they are part of a long history of unpunished brutality, stretching from Chechnya and Georgia to Syria and Mali. "They believe they can do whatever they want," Matviychuk explains. "This cruelty has become part of Russian culture."

And then, there is the failure of discipline within the Russian military itself. Unlike professional armies, where strict rules govern the treatment of prisoners, Russian forces lack command oversight. The chaotic nature of Russian military operations, combined with the presence of mercenary groups, convict battalions, and undisciplined conscripts, has led to widespread unauthorized executions. 

Identifying the patterns: A long history of Russian war crimes

Russian military history is steeped in a pattern of brutality against both combatants and civilians, a legacy that has persisted through centuries and conflicts. From the imperial wars of conquest to the brutal suppression of internal dissent, from the Chechen Wars to Syria and now Ukraine, Russia’s use of indiscriminate violence has been a deliberate strategy rather than a series of isolated excesses. The roots of this institutionalized cruelty run deep, embedded in both the cultural psyche and political traditions of the Russian state.

In 1922, Maksim Gorky, one of Russia’s most celebrated writers, wrote a scathing critique of his own nation’s penchant for violence in an essay titled Russian Cruelty. He did not attribute this brutality to war itself but rather to a distinct and ingrained characteristic of Russian society. He described a "diabolical finesse" and an "aesthetic refinement" in the way Russians inflicted suffering, noting how cruelty was not just a means to an end but an end in itself. Gorky traced these patterns back through Russian history, referencing the tortures of the 17th century, the state-sponsored terror under Ivan the Terrible, and the unrelenting savagery of the Russian Civil War. His observations remain just as relevant today as they were a century ago.

During the Chechen Wars, Russian forces carried out “zachistka” (cleansing) operations, a euphemism for mass executions. In Novye Aldi in 2000, Russian federal troops murdered at least 60 civilians, looted homes, and raped women before setting houses on fire. In Syria, Russia used carpet-bombing tactics against civilian areas, deliberately targeting hospitals and markets to crush resistance. 

Syria became a proving ground for these brutal tactics. When Russia intervened in 2015 to prop up Bashar al-Assad’s regime, it did so with the same indiscriminate use of force it had honed in Chechnya. Entire neighborhoods in Aleppo and other rebel-held areas were reduced to rubble in carpet-bombing campaigns. Hospitals, food markets, and civilian shelters were hit repeatedly, with clear disregard for civilian lives. The goal was to crush resistance by instilling terror, just as had been done in Grozny years earlier. But Syria also provided something more sinister—a stage for Russia to showcase its military capabilities to the world. The destruction was as much about demonstrating power as it was about defeating the opposition.

Now, in Ukraine, these same patterns have reemerged with chilling precision. From Bucha to Izium, from Mariupol to Bakhmut, Russian forces have left behind a trail of horror, mirroring the scorched-earth tactics employed in Chechnya and Syria. The difference now is that Ukraine has been able to document these atrocities in real-time, ensuring the world cannot look away.

The legal & political fight for justice

The deliberate execution of POWs is a war crime under Article 8 of the Rome Statute. Russia is a signatory to the Geneva Conventions, which explicitly prohibit the killing, torture, and inhumane treatment of captured soldiers. Yet Moscow has made it clear: it does not recognize international law.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has already issued arrest warrants for Russian officials—including Vladimir Putin—for the deportation of Ukrainian children, setting a legal precedent. But prosecuting the architects of Russia’s war crimes remains a daunting challenge.

The ICC, along with Ukraine’s war crimes investigators, is gathering evidence for future trials. Intelligence reports, satellite images, and survivor testimonies have documented direct links between execution orders and Russian military commanders. But without Russian cooperation, justice will rely on external pressure, captured Russian officers, and post-war trials.

There is also a growing push for a special tribunal to prosecute Russian war crimes outside of the ICC framework. If Nuremberg set a precedent for Nazi Germany, a similar tribunal must be created for Russia.

What Putin’s endorsement of executions means for the world

Vladimir Putin is not just aware of these war crimes—he is actively endorsing them. On a recent visit to Kursk, he declared that captured Ukrainian soldiers would be treated as “terrorists”. Soon after, reports emerged of Russian forces executing POWs in Kursk Oblast. The pattern is undeniable—Putin’s words are not rhetoric, but orders.

This brings haunting echoes of Nazi Germany. Hitler’s regime justified mass executions through propaganda that dehumanized Jews, Slavs, and other “undesirables”. Putin is using the same tactics, portraying Ukrainians as existential threats to Russia, allowing his troops to commit mass killings with ideological justification.

If Russia is allowed to continue these executions with impunity, it will set a precedent that war crimes are permissible. Other authoritarian regimes will take note: torture and mass executions work, and no international body will stop them.

This war is not just about Ukraine. It is a battle between two world orders: authoritarianism and democracy. If Russia’s strategy of terror and genocide succeeds, the entire international legal system collapses.

There is no neutrality. The world must stand with Ukraine—not just to protect its people, but to defend the very principles of civilization itself.

Because if Putin’s Russia is allowed to win through slaughter, history tells us—this horror will not stop at Ukraine’s borders.