Foreign Affairs Minister Oana Toiu attended on Tuesday, in Bucha, Ukraine, alongside her EU counterparts, a ceremony commemorating the victims of the massacre which occurred four years ago and called for measures to be taken against the aggressors.
"Today, in Bucha, I lit a candle for the innocent women, men and children killed four years ago by the Russian invaders. The heavy silence that fell in front of the 'St Andrew' Church overshadowed any possible speech. I came together with the Foreign ministers to mark four years since one of the darkest chapters in the history of this illegal and barbaric war, but also to keep hope alive together. A future in which children grow up free from fear must prevail. The Russians were driven out from here, although they believed they would rule this place. They had reached with their illegal occupation just 17 kilometres from Kyiv. Hundreds of abducted children have also been returned to their community and families. Bucha is now a story of light and darkness," the head of the Romanian diplomacy wrote on her Facebook page.
She said that the ministers in attendance discussed justice for the victims.
"We discussed today the measures we are taking together to ensure there are consequences for the criminals. We cannot honor the memory of the victims through remembrance alone. Justice is needed and those responsible must pay. This is also Romania's stake: any aggression must have consequences, not rewards. We discussed the next steps for establishing a Special Tribunal for the crime of aggression, the register of damages and the operationalisation of the International Compensation Commission," Toiu said.
She added that the Strategic Partnership recently signed by the presidents of Romania and Ukraine provides the framework "to strengthen not only good neighborly relations, but also the path towards a common European future."
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas and other foreign ministers from EU member states were present on Tuesday in Ukraine to pay tribute to the civilian victims of the massacre carried out by the Russian army in the early days of the invasion in Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv.
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