UA
FR
DEDeputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Smyrnov and Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Anton Korynevych held a meeting with the ambassadors of 30 countries in Kyiv and presented the project of creating a special tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
As the President’s Office notes, the special tribunal should have jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute Russia’s top political and military leadership for committing the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
“Russian soldiers and their commanders who committed war crimes will be brought to justice. The crime of aggression is often called the ‘mother of all crimes’ – the highest international crime. We are talking specifically about the president and other top officials of the Russian Federation, in particular the members of the National Security Council who authorised military aggression against Ukraine,” said Andriy Smyrnov, Deputy Head of the President’s Office.
Over the past six months, Ukrainian law enforcement officers and international partners have registered and are investigating tens of thousands of criminal cases related to Russia’s war against Ukraine. Among them are hundreds of criminal proceedings in partner countries, but none of them is over the crime of aggression, the main crime from which other war crimes and crimes against humanity are derived.
However, as Andriy Smyrnov pointed out, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, which investigates the crimes of the Russian military in Ukraine, can prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. But it is quite difficult to establish a legal connection between specific crimes and the instructions of the Russian authorities. Therefore, it is important to prove the direct guilt of the president of the Russian Federation and other political leaders.
According to the Deputy Head of the President’s Office, the leadership of Russia must be held accountable for the crime of aggression in order to prevent future wars unleashed at the will of certain dictators. So, this is a strategic necessity.
“We want to create a tribunal with all the countries willing to give a legal assessment to the barbaric and cruel military policy of the Russian president and his regime. We really hope that, while Ukraine is fighting day and night for its right to exist, international law will also work,” Korynevych said.
The international partners were urged to support Ukraine in establishing a special international tribunal.
Bohdan Marusyak
