Appeal about the humanitarian crisis at the Russia-Georgia border crossing “Verkhny Lars” and the violation of the rights of Ukrainian citizens deported from Russia

We, the representatives of human rights organisations and civic initiatives from the region of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, hereby state the existence of numerous acute humanitarian problems at the Verkhny Lars border crossing point (Russia–Georgia border), where Ukrainian citizens who are being deported by the authorities of the Russian Federation find themselves in extremely difficult circumstances.

According to information collected and published by the Ukrainian human rights organisation “Protection of Prisoners of Ukraine” on its official website, dozens of Ukrainian citizens who are being forcibly deported by the Russian Federation are unable to cross the border at the Verkhny Lars crossing point and are left in a state of legal and physical uncertainty, without access to adequate assistance, shelter, food, means of communication, medical care or legal support, and with an insufficient supply of water. As of 21 July 2025, 95 Ukrainian citizens, including 7 women, were being held in the basement of an unfinished terminal – a temporary holding facility for foreign nationals designed to accommodate only 18 persons. Among these individuals are members of various social groups, including:

Former Ukrainian prisoners who found themselves in territories occupied by Russian forces and were subsequently transferred to places of forced detention within the Russian Federation. After serving their sentences, they are placed in temporary detention centres for foreign nationals awaiting deportation.

Ukrainian citizens who were convicted by Russian courts either in the occupied territories or in the Russian Federation itself (including political prisoners) and who are now being deported following the completion of their sentences.

Ukrainian citizens who had been residing in the Russian Federation, have no criminal convictions, yet have received court orders for forced deportation. The number of such individuals is increasing as a result of the repressive policies of the Russian regime, which is expelling Ukrainians from the occupied territories who have refused to accept Russian citizenship.

Some of the Ukrainian citizens currently being held at Verkhny Lars belong to vulnerable groups, including: refugees from the occupied territories of Ukraine; individuals who have been subjected to politically motivated persecution in the Russian Federation; and persons with disabilities.

These individuals are deprived of access to food, medical care, adequate sanitary conditions, communication facilities, and legal assistance. Detention in such conditions may last for weeks or even months, constituting inhuman and degrading treatment.

At present, approximately 800 Ukrainian nationals are being held in Russian centres for the temporary detention of foreign citizens and are awaiting deportation through Georgia. The infrastructure at the Verkhny Lars border crossing is wholly unprepared to accommodate such an influx.

We emphasise that the situation at the Verkhny Lars crossing point bears the hallmarks of systemic human rights violations and constitutes a flagrant breach of the European Convention on Human Rights, in particular:

• Article 3: Prohibition of torture and of inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;
• Article 5: Right to liberty and security of person (as the individuals are, in effect, being detained without legal grounds or judicial decisions).

Additionally, the following provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are being violated:

• Article 5: The right not to be subjected to degrading treatment;
• Article 7: The right to be free from discrimination – a right violated in the case of former prisoners;
• Article 13: The right to return to one’s own country.

The violations of the rights of Ukrainian citizens awaiting passage at the Russia–Georgia border have attracted the attention of several media outlets. More detailed information may be found, for instance, in reports by the BBC Russian Service and Novaya Gazeta Europe. On 16 July 2025, the issue of rights violations against Ukrainian citizens being deported from the Russian Federation was discussed by human rights defenders from various countries during the Solidarity Talks event titled “The Difficult Road Home: How Can We Help Ukrainians Returning from Russian Places of Forced Detention?” Participants in this discussion proposed a number of measures aimed at preventing further violations of human rights at Verkhny Lars.

The only reliable means of putting an end to the systemic violations of human rights is to organise the return of Ukrainian citizens from the Russian Federation directly to Ukraine. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine publicly stated on 19 July 2025:

“To avoid further complications, we publicly propose that Russia transfer these categories of Ukrainian citizens directly to the border with Ukraine. We are prepared to receive them there. There are appropriate sections of the border where this is possible.” Until this issue is resolved by such means, a comprehensive set of measures must be implemented to restore the rights of Ukrainian citizens currently being held in unacceptable conditions at the Verkhny Lars border crossing.

We recognise that the violations of the rights of Ukrainian citizens at the Russia–Georgia border represent only one part of a broader issue of persecution of Ukrainian nationals within the Russian Federation and beyond. However, in this appeal, we are compelled to focus on the most urgent aspects of this crisis.

We also draw attention to the fact that Georgia is a member state of the Council of Europe and is therefore bound to comply with the provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights. Under these circumstances, the State may be held accountable before the European Court of Human Rights. In order to facilitate immediate action to end these violations, Rule 39 of the Rules of Court may, in particular, be invoked.

We emphasise that full responsibility for the conditions of stay, treatment of foreign nationals, and adherence to international obligations lies with the Georgian authorities, who exercise jurisdiction over their border infrastructure and are endowed with the corresponding legal duties.

A State’s failure to ensure minimum humanitarian standards for asylum seekers or persons in transit constitutes a systemic violation of international law. By way of comparison, in 2020–2021, the Russian Federation deliberately created similar situations at the Belarus–EU border, using refugees from Syria; however, European Union member states were able to uphold the core standards of international protection.

We strongly urge the following:

1. To immediately ensure humanitarian access to Ukrainian citizens who are in transit or stranded at the Verkhny Lars border crossing. We call for visits to be arranged by representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and the United Nations Committee Against Torture – both to the Ukrainian citizens at Verkhny Lars and to those held in centres for the temporary detention of foreign nationals in the Russian Federation.

2. To organise monitoring of human rights compliance along the return route from Verkhny Lars in Georgia to Ukraine, under the auspices of competent international organisations and the Ombudspersons of Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova. In particular, it is essential to identify and prevent violations of the rights of former prisoners.

3. To ensure adequate living conditions for Ukrainian citizens and stateless persons at the Verkhny Lars crossing point, including sufficient nutrition and access to medical care. In light of the Russian regime’s plans to intensify deportations of Ukrainian citizens, preparations must be made to accommodate a greater number of individuals at this border point.

4. To take all possible measures to alter the route of transfer for Ukrainian citizens from the Russian Federation and to organise their passage across the Russia–Ukraine border, or alternatively, facilitate their entry into Ukraine via the border with Belarus.

We call upon the Secretary-General of the United Nations to apply political and diplomatic pressure on the Government of Georgia in connection with the systematic violations of human rights against Ukrainian citizens at the Verkhny Lars crossing point. We further call upon the Secretary-General to initiate an urgent response by the United Nations Committee Against Torture, including:

• A legal assessment of the situation as potentially constituting cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment (Articles 1 and 16 of the Convention Against Torture);
• The issuance of a formal request for clarification and action from the Georgian authorities;
• Invoking emergency procedures under Rule 20 of the Rules of Procedure of the United Nations Committee Against Torture.

Signed by:

1. Center for Civil Liberties (Kyiv, Ukraine)
2. Human Rights Centre ZMINA (Kyiv, Ukraine)
3. KRF Public Alternative (Kharkiv, Ukraine)
4. International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)
5. Norwegian Helsinki Committee (Norway)
6. Promo LEX (Moldova)
7. Human Rights Movement: Bir Duino – Kyrgyzstan
8. Helsinki Citizen’s Assembly Vanadzor (Yerevan, Armenia)
9. Public Association “Dignity”(Astana, Kazakhstan)
10. Netherlands Helsinki Committee (Netherlands)