Lithuanian President, Ukrainian Prosecutor General talk special tribunal for Russia
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda discussed with Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin the issue of holding Russia to account for war crimes committed Ukraine and setting up a special tribunal to investigate the crime of Russian aggression.
That's according to the press service of Lithuania's President, Ukrinform reports.
During the meeting, Nausėda emphasized that Ukraine winning the war is the only way to stop Russian imperialism. He pointed out that peace must be achieved on terms acceptable to Ukraine, and that Russia must be held accountable for war crimes and crimes of aggression committed in Ukraine.
According to Nausėda, only bringing perpetrators o justice can prevent such crimes from being committed in the future.
"Lithuania will continue to actively support Ukraine's idea to establish a special tribunal to investigate the crime of Russia's aggression against Ukraine. Anyone who has committed crimes in Ukraine or who has given orders to commit them must be brought to justice," the president of Lithuania said.
Nauseda drew attention to the fact that a consistent collection of evidence is required to bring the aggressor to justice. At the same time, he noted the well-coordinated work of a Joint Investigation Team (JIT) established on the initiative of Lithuania, Ukraine, and Poland to document Russia's crimes in Ukraine.
In addition, as the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine reported in Telegram, JIT members signed an agreement in Vilnius to probe not only war crimes but also the crime of genocide.
"International cooperation in the investigation and prosecution for genocide is reaching a new level. We are joining efforts with partners to investigate this "crime of crimes". The agreement will facilitate the exchange of evidence and information, and the work of the JIT will be strengthened by international experts," said Prosecutor General
He also noted that "from the first days of the full-scale invasion [it - ed.] became clear that the massive and systematic nature of war crimes committed in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine has signs of a campaign of persecution of Ukrainians as a national group."
"Our joint actions aimed at providing fast and real coordination and cooperation of law enforcement agencies are much more than just a practical, logistical step. This signals to the world that those responsible for this military invasion will not weaken our common commitment to a free and democratic society," said Lithuanian Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė.
The Prosecutor General's Office reports that, during the two-day coordination meeting in Vilnius, the participants discussed the progress of the inquiries and their directions, and consulted on important decisions in the JIT's efforts. They also discussed the possibility of Europol joining the JIT work.
As reported, the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) for gathering evidence and investigating Russian crimes committed in Ukraine was established with the support of Eurojust. It consists of the International Criminal Court, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia, Romania, and Estonia.