War crime charges may not be enough to deter Putin — even as evidence of Russian atrocities mounts

The remains of a Russian rocket, one of two to be launched at a railway station in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, killing 30 and injuring 100 more.

Even as he faces the prospect of war crime charges, President Vladimir Putin is undeterred in his offensive, even as he uncovered the extent of Russian atrocities against Ukrainian civilians.

At least 50 people were killed and almost 100 were injured when two rockets hit a railway station in eastern Ukraine. Russia has been demanded to be punished for all their crimes.

The Kramatorsk station attack was denied by the Kremlin.

Hundreds of devastating images and more local accounts of mass killings and torture of civilians came to light this week, mostly from the cities of Irpin and Hostomel.

Satellite images of crowded graves show that more than 300 people have been killed in the city by Russian soldiers. Some bodies were found on the streets with their hands tied behind their backs, suggesting they were executed. Others are thought to have been killed while trying to flee.

The Kremlin has denied any involvement in the attacks.

A dead body lays strewn on the ground next to a bicycle on the outskirts of Bucha, Ukraine. Scores of civilians are thought to have been killed by Russian troops while trying to flee the city to the northwest of Kyiv.

Western allies and human rights groups have come together to condemn the indiscriminate civilian attacks. The G-7 foreign ministers welcomed and supported the efforts to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Russian forces.

The list of atrocities and violations of international law, including international humanitarian law and human rights, will be engraved in the town of Bucha and other Ukrainian towns.

Some are not convinced that the measures will deter the Kremlin.

It is difficult to know whether the threat of accountability weighs on the minds of the Russian military or political leadership, including Putin, according to the executive director of the University of Dayton's Human Rights Center.

The President of Ukraine has called for war crime charges to be brought against those responsible for the attacks.

Despite evidence suggesting otherwise, Putin continues to deny that Russian forces are targeting civilians and insist that the evidence of war crimes is fake. Satellite footage of the corpse-strewn streets of Bucha, when the city was under Russian occupation, is counter to Moscow's claims.

Images and local accounts of the mass killing, torture and rape of non-combatants in the cities of Bucha, Irpin and Hostomel, just outside Kyiv, have heightened calls for Russia perpetrators to be tried for war crimes.

Under the leadership of the International Criminal Court, investigations into alleged war crimes continue.

There is no guarantee that Putin or other perpetrators would be prosecuted in the end for their crimes. Few heads of state have ever been held accountable for war crimes or crimes against humanity. The threat of war crime investigations may not be enough to deter the Kremlin.

International condemnation or war crimes threats will have little effect on Russian behavior. This is nothing new for them.

The University of Dayton's Inglis said that such trials could raise the stakes politically for the Western alliance and further undermine Russia's position on the world stage.

Some are less optimistic that recent events will bring an end to the war.

Civilians walk amid the destruction on a street in the town of Bucha, on the outskirts of Kyiv, after the Ukrainian army secured the area following the withdrawal of the Russian army.

International condemnation or war crimes threats will not affect Russian behavior. Bob Latiff, a chairman at the University of Notre Dame, said that this is nothing new for them.

Thomas Kuehne, professor at Clark University, said that he was afraid that there would be no end to the war soon.

The history of warfare and war crimes over the last 100 years shows that war crimes like those we see today are done deliberately and in full awareness of the shock they cause. He said that we are used to seeing such crimes and their consequences.

According to analysts, there is another source of international action that could prove more powerful in influencing Putin's resolve. India and China are increasing their pressure.

The crimes are increasing resolve among Ukraine's existing supporters to continue and even step up military assistance and economic pressure. Mary Ellen O'Connell, professor of law at the University of Notre Dame, said that ending the war will require a bigger coalition of support.

If China were to shift its stance on the war it would likely be a game changer for Putin.

India, without naming Russia, said earlier this week that it supports calls for an independent investigation into the mass killings in Bucha. It abstained from a vote to suspend Russia from the UN Human Rights Council.

China, a key ally of Russia, continues to resist condemnation of the killings in Bucha and voted against Russia's suspension.

Inglis said that Putin is unlikely to be moved by a shift in tone from the world's second-largest economy.

If China changed its stance on the war, it would be a game-changer for Putin. She said that China moved away from abstaining in votes on UN resolutions related to the war to voting against them.