Russia plans to withdraw from Europe’s anti-torture treaty

Moscow’s decision will likely be seen as inconsequential given growing condemnation of widespread human rights abuses committed in Ukraine.

Russia plans to formally withdraw from Europe’s convention against torture and inhuman treatment, according to a decree published this week.

The resolution by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin calls upon President Vladimir Putin to submit the withdrawal from the treaty to Russia’s lower house of parliament.

Moscow’s move is likely to be seen as moot given widespread criticism of its worsening human rights record since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In 2024, UN-backed experts presented evidence that Russia had systematically tortured Ukrainian prisoners of war. Last month, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Moscow was responsible for violations of international law in Ukraine — including torture and the use of rape as a weapon of war.

Read more: Euronews