'Was it really necessary to wait for massacre in Bucha?': Polish premier criticizes EU

WARSAW

Citing the “massacre” in Bucha, near Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, Poland’s premier on Wednesday strongly criticized the European Commission for failing to do more to prevent Russian attacks on Ukraine.

"Was it really necessary to wait for the massacre in Bucha? Was it necessary to wait for the images of innocents murdered, revealing Russian brutality?" Mateusz Morawiecki said in a video message, referring to the bodies of hundreds of civilians found after Russia pulled back its troops.

Calling on the commission – the EU's executive branch – to impose tougher sanctions on Russia, he said the EU had even been late in imposing its first official embargo on the Russian energy sector.

The Russia-Ukraine war, which started on Feb. 24, has drawn international outrage, with the EU, US, and Britain, among others, implementing tough financial sanctions on Moscow.

At least 1,480 civilians have been killed in Ukraine and 2,195 injured, according to UN estimates, with the true figure feared to be far higher.

More than 4.24 million Ukrainians have fled to other countries, with millions more internally displaced, according to the UN refugee agency.