Why do families killed by 2022 cannot apply

Petty officer Maxim Ridzanich And his team left the destroyed Donetsk airport two days after announced that the last Ukrainian military left the airport.

« Seven guys with a limited ammunition was suggested that there were many people’s defense there. The man was planning the actions of everyone so that the enemies did not know about the true state of affairs. They left the airport on January 23, 2015, and on March 20, the man died, saving his brothers »– says Cyborg’s wife Irina.

21-year-old officer Vladimir Kravchukgraduate of the Kharkiv Academy of the National Guard of Ukraine, courageously accepted the battle and died in 2014 near Yampol in Lyman region.

Anatoly ElephantBy reflecting the tank attack and covering the departure of his brothers, he died under Debaltsev in February 2015.

But Maxim Ridzanich, Vladimir Kravchuk, Anatoly Slonsky, as well as all military who died by 2022, was for some reason denied the status of victims of Russia’s aggression.

Native of the dead ATO and OOS heroes have no right to submit information about the death of their relatives to The International Register of LossRussianwhich was created by the Council of Europe in May 2023. And in the future, they will not be able to get compensation as those whose relatives were killed during the war.

The victims of the families believe that Ukraine does not articulate the topic of the true duration of the war, which Russia has solved in Ukraine. Officials also assure that they are trying, but the international community is not yet ready for such recognition.

In order to find out why the International Register of Losses begins to count the losses of Ukraine only from 2022 and whether it is possible to influence the position of the founding states, we talked with the families of dead and public activists, received a lawyer’s comment, studied the official answers of the Ministry of Justice and the Kyiv Office of the International Register.

Mental pain and suffering tied to the date

Victoria Kravchuk, The chairman of the public union « United Family of Ukraine », learned about the possibility of applying for the death of a close member of the family from a message on the website of the Ministry of Veterans.

Register He worked In April 2024: first it was possible to apply for compensation, and from January 16, 2025 – a statement in the category « death of a close member of the family ».

Ms. Victoria’s 21-year-old son Vladimir died in 2014 near Yampol during the liberation of the estuary. But Ms. Victoria did not even have time to open an « action », where it was possible to fill out the application to the register of losses in category A2, because she was called by mothers, wives and children of the dead who were unable to file this application.

« It turns out that this applies only to families who lost their loved ones after February 24, 2022 … For many of us, it became a strong disappointment: it is not even in compensation as such. But the fact that our spiritual pain and suffering are not taken into account. – Victoria Kravchuk asks with sadness.

Families wrote in support of « Action », hoping that it is just a technical mistake. But they answered: these conditions are defined By decreethat regulates the service. Therefore, the register of losses, which was created to document crimes, currently covers events since 2022 in the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

« In this form, it emphasizes that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine lasts only three years. Although from February 2014 – one enemy and one war. Despite all legal conflicts in the name of this war, it is important to articulate clearly that all this is military armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine. – Victoria Kravchuk is confident.

The relatives of the dead are divided into two camps

Cyborg’s wife Maxim Ridzanich Irina Golovach It admits that families such as it feel fundamentally separated from the community of those who were injured after 2022. Like, in fact, veterans who received disabilities by fighting in the ATO and OOS.

Maxim Ridzanich

« The state has already divided us into two camps: pension provision, disposable monetary assistance, which is paid in the event of a warrior’s death, – says the woman. – Therefore, the case with the International Register for me was just another marker of the state’s rejection of our relatives. And some sense of humiliation. « 

Maxim Ridzanich went to the army volunteer in 2014. Despite the fact that the family raised three children, he could not remain aside from the struggle for the freedom of the Motherland. Geophysicist-nuclear, lawyer, entrepreneur became a commander of a sniper platoon in 81 separate airmobile brigade, consisting of two rotations at the Donetsk airport.

« The second rotation of it fell on the last days of defense of the Donetsk airport. He with his team two more days after the Ukrainian soldiers were announced, he was at the airport. They did not get in touch and everyone thought – says Mrs. Irina.

But they survived. Maxim himself soon died, rescuing his brothers. The star of the Hero of Ukraine, the family of Maxim Ridzanich, received on the 30th anniversary of independence – so the state noted his courage during the defense of the Donetsk airport.

Ms. Irina confesses that she has been straining that Ukraine does not take into account the period since 2014 in the official reference of the war days.

« We know that in 2023, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe acknowledged that the Russian Federation has been coming to an aggressive war against Ukraine since February 2014. And in January 2024 it was established that the international compensation mechanism should cover the losses caused by aggression since February 2014, – explains Irina Head. – So why could our officials not appeal to these decisions? I think it is unfair that we are denied even the recognition of our relatives. « 

Weighing political weight

The Community Union of Ukraine and other activists have applied to eliminate injustice to various state institutions: to the Presidential Office, to the Prime Minister, to the Ombudsman. They also wrote an appeal in the name of Markian Klyukivsky, executive director of the Kiev Office of the Register of Damage. The editorial office of « Ukrainian Truth. Life » also directed a request to this organization.

According to the response from the Ministry of Justice, « the position on the beginning of the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine since February 2014 is reflected in official statements of the highest leadership of the state, public authorities, numerous normative legal acts », but despite the unambiguous position of Ukraine, the international community before the beginning of the full-time. the year. Only on March 2, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution No. ES-11/1 under the name « Aggression against Ukraine », which recognized the fact of aggression against Ukraine.

And the resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, which is mentioned by Ms Irina Golovach, has no binding force. Such documents have much less political weight than the resolutions of the UN General Assembly, on the basis of which this register was created.

« Nevertheless, Ukraine in communication with international partners constantly insists and continues to insist that the international compensation mechanism should cover the losses, losses and damage caused since 2014, since 2014 – written in the answer. – An active international process of creating a second element of an international compensation mechanism is ongoing – a commission for consideration of applications that will consider applications that come to the Register of losses and will establish compensation. Ukraine also emphasizes more than 50 countries from around the world that are involved in the creation of the commission, criticality of this problem. « 

Natalia Yurlova, lawyer of NGO « Donbas SOS », also explains that this register only records information about the losses that ordinary people, businesses suffered, the state, Ukraine together with local self -government bodies. Accounting for applications and evidence is not identical to compensation for the damage caused, but it is the first and important step towards creating an international compensation mechanism that is planned to be created in the future.

As of today, several categories of applications have been opened – A3.1 damage or destruction of residential real estate, A1.1 forced internal movement and A2.1. The death of a close member of the family.

« In order for the application to be deposited in the register of losses, it must meet the key criteria – the losses caused on February 24, 2022; the losses caused as a result of unlawful actions – explains Yurlova. – This means that information can also be provided in the occupied territories – Crimea, Sevastopol, Donetsk, Lugansk, etc., but if there are data that the losses have been caused since 2022. This is the difference, for example, from the Ukrainian State Register, where there are restrictions both territorial and temporal. And in RD4U – only time. « 

The official response of Markian Klyukivsky, the Executive Director of the Kiev Office of the Register of Loss, also stated that the decision on 2022 depends not only on Ukraine. They write:

« This date is not accidental. It reflects the legal and political consensus of the international community, which was most clearly formulated in the resolutions of the UN-11/1 UN General Assembly of ES-11/1 of March 2, 2022 and ES-11/5 of November 14, 2022 (43 states and the European Union). « 

At the same time, Klyuchivsky adds that this issue is actively discussed. For example, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in its resolution 2598 (2025) called on participants and associate members of the Register to consider expanding the time boundaries of the mandate by 2014.

« Any changes to the charter, including the enlargement of the coverage over time, can only be adopted with the agreement of the register participants. In the case of such a decision, the Secretariat will be fully prepared and processed by the damage related to the damage caused in these previous periods, » – they say in the Kiev office of the Register.

« In order to make it possible to apply for losses by 2022, all 43 countries that have joined the Register must vote for changes », – explains the lawyer « Donbas SOS » Natalia Yurlova.

Request for justice

The fact that these restrictions only add suffering to the relatives of those who died until February 2022, says Anatoly Slonsky’s widow.

Man Oksana Sloneskaya died on 7 February 2015 During the fighting for Debaltseve, reflecting the enemy tank attack. Anatoly’s body was taken out of the weapons, and the family was able to bury him in his native Uman. Although many dead during those fights remained in the territory that Russia occupied.

Anatoly Elephant

« You know how in every family, we grasp every reason to learn about their characters and talk about them. For me, for example, it is very valuable that one of the brothers wrote a book about those events and dedicated it to Anatoly, – says Ms. Oksana. – And this register is not about money for us, but about recognition, memory and honor. « 

Ms. Oksana confesses that there is a huge request for justice among the families of the dead by 2022, which must be taken into account at all levels. Therefore, families turn to society to eliminate this injustice. Activists in particular The petition was registered on the website of the President of Ukraine.

Ms. Victoria Kravchuk, who in her union unites without the date of the family of those who died for their homeland, says they all hope for changes. It is Ukraine that should remind the world that for more than 4 thousand days the Russian army has destroyed our land and kills Ukrainians.

« We have commemorative days when we solemnly remember » cyborgs « or those who died when leaving from Ilovaysk or Debaltsev, but we refuse to their families even in recognizing the native victims of the aggressor country! It is not logical or fair », «  The woman believes.

Elizabeth Goncharovespecially for UP. Life