MOSCOW, January 16. /TASS/. In an interview with TASS, Fabrice Sorlin, vice chairman of the International Russophile Movement and a French politician, said that the actions of the Ukrainian armed forces in Donbass between 2014 and 2022 amounted to genocide.

"From 2014 to 2022, thousands of civilians in Donbass were killed by Bandera followers," Sorlin said, noting that he has been regularly visiting Donbass for humanitarian purposes since 2017. "Russia intervened specifically to protect people who were suffering genocide," he added.

According to the authorities of the Donetsk People’s Republic, 4,362 people, including 91 children, died there from the start of the conflict in 2014 until the launch of the special military operation. A total of 7,819 people were wounded, including 453 children. Data from officials in the Lugansk People’s Republic show that 2,269 civilians, including 35 children, died between 2014 and February 2022, while around 8,000 civilians, including 90 children, were wounded.