In Strasbourg, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Secretary General of the Council of Europe Alain Berset signed the Agreement on the Establishment of a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine.
Ahead of the signing, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Alain Berset held a meeting, where they summarized the progress made in setting up the Special Tribunal.
The President highlighted as a key achievement that the Statute of the Special Tribunal clearly states: the head of state, the head of government, and the minister of foreign affairs will bear responsibility for the crime – with no mention of personal immunities. This means they will not escape accountability, even after they leave office.
Russians and their accomplices responsible for the crime of aggression against Ukraine will be tried in The Hague – the city of justice and international law.
“Today’s Agreement and this Tribunal give us a real chance to ensure accountability for the crime of aggression. Other institutions, even international ones, do not have the necessary tools to do so. We must send a clear message: aggression leads to punishment. And we must do it together – as all of Europe,” the President said.
The Special Tribunal will also cooperate with the International Criminal Court. Both institutions will be able to investigate cases in parallel without interfering with each other’s work.
“It has now been eleven years since the beginning of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and more than three years since the start of the full-scale invasion. Every institution has its role. For the Council of Europe, that role is justice and accountability,” Alain Berset said.
The work to establish the Special Tribunal has involved 39 countries, the EU, and the Council of Europe. The preparatory process lasted more than two years. On May 9, this year, in Lviv, the coalition of states officially endorsed the creation of the Special Tribunal.
