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On 13 October, a representative of the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Lithuania was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and presented with a note of strong protest over Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine and its relentless attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure.

The note states that between 10 and 12 October, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation carried out large-scale attacks against Ukrainian cities, destroying civilian infrastructure, including postal logistics centres, energy and railway facilities, residential areas and other civilian sites.

Particularly tragic consequences resulted from the 10 October attack on Zaporizhzhia using guided aerial bombs, which directly struck residential areas, damaging or destroying 29 residential buildings and dozens of other civilian facilities. The attack killed 23 civilians, including four children, and injured 32 people.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stresses that these attacks are not isolated incidents. They form part of Russia’s systematic campaign of terror against Ukrainian civilians. According to the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission, in the first eight months of 2026, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine increased by 55 per cent compared with the same period last year and was more than twice as high as in the corresponding period of 2024.

The scale and sustained nature of these attacks, as well as the targets selected, demonstrate that Russia’s actions are deliberately directed against Ukrainian civilians and civilian infrastructure. Such deliberate attacks constitute grave violations of international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes.

The Republic of Lithuania strongly condemns these criminal acts by Russia, which deliberately disregard the principles of international humanitarian law and the rules of international law requiring parties to a conflict to distinguish at all times between civilians and civilian objects, on the one hand, and military targets, on the other. All those responsible for these crimes must be held criminally accountable.

Lithuania reiterates its unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.