The incitement of war and the public denial of the Ukrainian people's right to exist as a national group indicate that there is a genocidal intent behind Russian atrocities. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote this in an article for Der Spiegel.

"The Russian leadership, officials and public figures have long been laying the ideological foundation for genocide. A year ago, in July 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin published an essay "On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians," in which he declared once again that Ukrainians and Russians are "one people, one whole." In the essay, he also argued that "modern Ukraine is a complete product of the Soviet era" and that "real Ukrainian sovereignty is only possible in partnership with Russia," Kuleba said.

The minister noted that the Russian leader has never concealed his intentions, stating that the existence of Ukraine as a state is a mistake that must be corrected, and that Ukrainians are essentially Russians, so they will either agree to be "one people" with Russians or be subject to destruction.

In addition, direct public incitement to genocide is contained in a number of articles in the Russian state media, posts by high-ranking Russian officials on social media, or in their statements on television.