New Hague. Which Putin tribunal offers to organize Europe

Kyiv's initiative was already supported by the Chairman of the European Commission Ursula von Der Lyen - she said that the tribunal could be created with the support of the UN for investigation. And perhaps in the Netherlands, in the Hague. And it can be a completely new instance - focus explains why. It is often necessary to hear that Russian President Vladimir Putin and the highest leadership of Russia should be on the dock in the Hague.

It is in this Dutch city that the International Criminal Court (ISS) is located on the North Sea. It was created in 1998 on the basis of the Roman Statute, a document signed by 120 states, including Ukraine and Russia (opposed China, Iraq, Israel, Libya, Qatar, USA, Yemen). He started working in 2002, when 60 countries ratified the agreement. Ukraine has not done this yet, and Russia has withdrawn its signature.

The ICS is competent to persecute persons responsible for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and aggression. However, these crimes can be considered if they were committed in relation to countries that not only signed, but ratified the Roman Statute. To consider crimes against others, you need to specify the ISS specifically.

What Ukraine did in 2015-the deputies were asked to study both events on the Maidan in Kiev in 2013-2014-shootings of protesters, and in Ukraine, starting with the occupation of Crimea.

The Verkhovna Rada's appeal was the beginning of the investigation, which by February 24, 2022 took place quite sluggishly - prosecutors thought for several years whether to open proceedings in Ukraine, and what conflict in our country was taking place - civil, civil with elements of international or international armed. At the same time, the Verkhovna Rada refuses to vote under the Roman Statute, despite numerous lawyers of human rights activists.

The reasons may be different - from the unwillingness to annoy the US who do not recognize this instance - President Donald Trump even imposed sanctions on the ISS prosecutors, prohibiting entering them into the United States for investigating actions in Afghanistan (Joe Biden later abolished) to fear) that the defendants may be not only the higher leadership of Russia, but also Ukraine - the ISS is investigating crimes, regardless of who committed them.

After February 24, it became apparent which country aggressor and which was a victim. A number of European countries of the Roman Statute have stated that it is ready to allocate additional funding for the ICS to investigate events in Ukraine, and asked the court of priority.

As a result, the ICS Prosecutor Karim Han stated at the end of February that the International Criminal Court in the Hague launched an investigation into war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide acts in Ukraine, and subsequently arrived in Ukraine personally. He visited Kharkiv, accompanied by Prosecutor General Irina Venediktova, but was unable to meet with President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky.

In July 2022, Andrei Kostin, the Prosecutor General's Attorney General, was replaced by the prosecutor's office actively continued his cooperation with investigators of the ISS - they often occur in Ukraine. In addition, Kostin says he is ready to transfer some criminal cases to the ISS. "When Putin is said to be in the Hague, I would not hurry to say that.

But now the Netherlands confirm the readiness to carry out the process in their country, and possibly in the Hague," says Presidential Deputy Head of Presidential Office Andrei Smirnov. In the history of the tribunal on aggression, the International Criminal Court in the Hague does not appear now. Smirnov explains that the crime of aggression has a unique regime of jurisdiction, separate from other crimes of the Roman Statute, such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

"Countries that are not the States Parties to the International Criminal Court are excluded from the jurisdiction of this court on investigation and prosecuting for a crime of aggression, regardless of whether they are a victim of aggression or aggressor. Except But, given that Russia has the right to veto the Security Council, such an appeal is not just difficult to implement. More precisely it is simply impossible.

Accordingly, in this case, the International Criminal Court will not have a proper jurisdiction in investigating the crime of aggression, "Smirnov says. But the President's office is convinced that even if Ukraine became a full member of the ISS Club (ratified the Roman Statute), it would not change the situation - this court has never used this mechanism for decades. For example, in the case of Georgia - Russia attacked it in 2008.

Therefore, today the position of Ukraine is clear: a special tribunal for aggression - illegal invasion of the territory of a sovereign state should be created. His work will be focused on the actions of the exclusively the highest leadership of Russia, those who manage and control the state. Let the ICC and courts at the national level deals with military crimes.

And the guilt of the top of Russia in the crime of aggression is quite easy to prove - it is only necessary to view two videos: a meeting of the Security Council of Russia and the Speaker on the announcement of a "special military operation" in Ukraine. It is important that the ad hoc court can allow the usual immunity from the leadership of Russia.

According to international law, the chairman and senior officials of any state have immunity from court prosecution-that is, by decision of other countries, they cannot be arrested and judged. But history knows the exceptions to overcoming such immunities in the work of special -threatenings, created by the UN Security Council within the 7th Chapter of the UN Charter (this section regulates the UN Activities on Activities).

In particular, the Tribunal on Yugoslavia issued all UN member states to arrest the current President Slobodan Miloshevich. Lawyers say that the government of Ukraine must sign a treaty with the UN (possibly on the recommendation of the UN General Assembly, where there is no blocking voice). It will then be clear that the creation of a tribunal in favor of all countries of the organization and therefore the international community.

Foreign media already write that the first project of the resolution has already been prepared. Ambassador from special instructions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Anton Korinevich, who is called the main lawyer of the creation of a special court, was recently in the Hague. He says that with the help of a special tribunal "it is possible to strengthen and internationalize the national investigation and prosecution for committing a crime of aggression against Ukraine.

" Currently, the legal circles are discussing the legitimacy of the tribunal with existing international instances. Because there can be a lot of lawsuits over Russia, so there should be no issues to the work of any court, including a special tribunal. His solution should be quite legitimate. For further execution of the judicial sentence, it must be recognized as the widest number of states.

And this requires the broad political will of the leaders' countries who will publicly support such creation and their financial support. In addition, the work of the tribunal cannot offset the investigation of specific military crimes conducted by the International Criminal Court. That is, the tribunal for aggression should be part of the whole system of justice in relation to Ukraine.

At the same time, there is another important point - how much all these considerations will take into account the interests of the large number of victims of Russian aggression, which, obviously, will not participate in the process of aggression. Most of them want to hear not only sentences to the leadership of Russia, but also specific perpetrators of war crimes. So far, this is a problem.