News

Russian UN ambassador accidentally says Bucha corpses 'didn't exist until they arrived'

Russian UN ambassador accidentally says Bucha corpses 'didn't exist until they arrived'
Russian ambassador to UN stumbles over words when questioned about Bucha
Independent

For a brief moment, the mask of Russian propaganda seemed to slip during a revealing interview with the Russian UN ambassador.

Over recent days, horrifying footage and images of bodies from the Kyiv suburb of Bucha have emerged, only for Kremlin-backed media to denounce them as an elaborate hoax.

It’s a narrative that journalists on the ground have proven to be utterly false, with Russia denouncing news as fake or spreading false as a tactic throughout the conflict.

Now, a new interview with Russian diplomat Vasily Alekseevich Nebenzya on the subject has seen the facade slip just a little.

Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

A clip was posted by journalist Alex Taylor with the caption: “My goodness, this must be the mother of all Freudian slips - by the Russian ambassador to the UN just now.

“‘The corpses in Boutcha that didn't exist before the Russian troops arrived ... er, er, left, sorry - before they left …’”

Ukraine’s foreign minister has warned mass killings of civilians in Bucha are only the “tip of the iceberg” of Russian atrocities in the country.

Hundreds of bodies have been discovered in mass graves and others left rotting in bags since Putin’s troops withdrew from the area.

Bucha and other cities including Mariupol have been under attack by Russian forces and constantly bombarded since the early days of the invasion almost six weeks ago, and they’re experiencing a worsening humanitarian situation.

“The humanitarian situation in the city is worsening,” British military intelligence said on Wednesday.

“Most of the 160,000 remaining residents have no light, communication, medicine, heat or water. Russian forces have prevented humanitarian access, likely to pressure defenders to surrender.”

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

The Conversation (0)