“Today, a decision is ahead of you – a decision to create a mechanism that can help prevent future wars – by bringing to responsibility. This is a decision to create a Tribunal for Aggression of Russia committed against Ukraine” – wrote the Ukrainian leader.
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The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiha, quoted by the Interfax-Ukraina agency, stated during a meeting in Lviv that “today another specific signal from Ukraine (to Putin) will flow: regardless of how much you consider the so-called winner, the punishment will be inevitable.”
He added that The central element of the new “legal infrastructure” will be the Council of Europe, with full support from European countries.
As Zelanski said, over 40 representatives of European countries met in Lviv to discuss the shape and role of the Tribunal for aggression of Russia against Ukraine and officially support its creation. The Tribunal is to operate in Luxembourg under the auspices of the Council of Europe.
The functioning of the new Tribunal
The Tribunal is a key element of European activities on settlements, which for Ukraine are a condition for a peace agreement. He is to examine the responsibility for the invasion: who issued a decision about the assault war, who led it and who made decisions about attacks on Ukraine.
First of all, the new court will deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Mikhail Miszustin and the head of diplomacy Sergei Lavrov. In further plans, he also has proceedings against the 20-30 most important military and political leaders who decided about the deeds of aggression against Ukraine.
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In the collection and analysis of evidence, the Tribunal will support the European International Center for the Prosecution of Aggression Crime (ICPA), with six members: Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Romania. As the EC representative said, this institution has already collected a very significant amount of evidence in this matter.
The Tribunal will be able to carry out hearings without the accused, and only in the presence of this person's lawyer. However, if the accused appears on the spot, they will have the right to re -trial.
The penalties provided by the new Tribunal are the same as those that apply under the Roman statute of the MTK. He provides for imprisonment, including life imprisonment, if it justifies a large scale of crime. The new tribunal can also decide to confiscate property or income tools. As she passed on to journalists of the EC, the funds collected can then be transferred to Ukraine as part of the currently prepared compensation fund under the International Commission for Claims for Ukraine.
The Court will operate within the Council of Europe. Nearly 40 countries entered the coalition of states for his establishment. Although the US during the term of Joe Biden took part in preparatory work, after the return of Donald Trump to the White House they withdrew from the project. No representative of the American administration appeared at the meeting in Lviv. “The door is not closed, the US can come back at any time, if they only decide on it,” a representative of the European Commission pointed out for journalists.
Countries that are members of the initiative will take on the financial burden of the Tribunal's activities, and in exchange they will affect the composition of the Tribunal Management Committee, which will choose prosecutors and judges. The location of the headquarters of the new court is the Netherlands.
