Ukraine insists on int’l model of tribunal for Russia

27.04.2023 18:49

Ukrinform

Ukraine stands for an international, not a hybrid, model of the tribunal for Russian crimes of aggression, which will allow the Russian leadership to be sentenced on behalf of the entire civilized world.

This was stated by Deputy Head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Smirnov, at an online meeting with members of the German Bundestag, the Office told Ukrinform.

"First of all, the international scenario of creating a tribunal will allow for sentencing Putin and his henchmen not on behalf of Ukraine, but on behalf of the entire civilized world. Ukraine is the affected party, and a decision made solely from our side may be perceived as not fully objective," Smirnov explained.

He also emphasized that the creation of a hybrid tribunal would require amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine, which he says cannot be adopted amid martial law.

The deputy head of the Presidential Office said that Ukraine had carefully studied the work of the Nuremberg Tribunal and the Tokyo process, and that is why the government considers the international version of the tribunal as most acceptable.

"Every day, people die in our country, every day they are tortured, raped, and illegally deported. We ask the whole world to wake up and act. We ask you to support the creation of an international tribunal that will make the Russian leadership accountable for the crime of aggression against our country," Smirnov emphasized.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, in September 2022, President Volodymyr Zelensky formed a working group headed by the head of the Presidential Administration Andriy Yermak, which is working on the issue of establishing a special tribunal to prosecute the leadership of the Russian Federation for committing the crime of aggression against Ukraine. The creation of such a tribunal has been supported by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, European Parliament, NATO Parliamentary Assembly, OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, and individual states.

Recently, the Western media reported that the West allegedly considers a hybrid tribunal to be the most realistic option for holding Russia accountable. This tribunal could combine Ukrainian jurisdiction with the trial based on international law.