Volodomyr Zelensky advocates the creation of a “Special Court for the crime of aggression against Ukraine”, to “punish those who are “out of reach” of the International Criminal Court. The Ukrainian president spoke, by videoconference, this Wednesday at a public debate on “War and Law”, which takes place in Paris.
Zelensky began his speech by saying that he was presenting “the Ukrainian perspective on how the law can guarantee peace.” He highlighted the importance of the existence of the International Criminal Court as “one of the most important world institutions that ensure justice and protect humanity.” He added Ukraine’s support for this court and said that he accepts its jurisdiction in relation to what happens in the country. He stated that they were “in constant communication” with representatives of the institution with the aim of “bringing the Russian occupiers to justice for the crimes committed by them on Ukrainian territory.”
However, he added that, for “the original crime of armed aggression”, there should be “a complement” to the activities of the International Criminal Court and advocates the creation of a “Special Court for the crime of aggression against Ukraine”, to “punish those who are “out of reach” of those or of “all other judicial institutions in the world”.
We must bring to justice those whose decisions started all of this. Those who committed the original crime. A crime in which all the evil displayed by the Russian occupiers is concentrated,” Zelensky said. “And we still do not have an institutional basis to hold Russian political and military leaders accountable for the crime of aggression,” the president adds.
Zelensky highlighted in his speech an attack that took place in the Zaporizhia region on September 30 in which 16 missiles fired by Russian forces caused a number of civilian casualties, 122 injuries and 30 deaths, according to reports.
The president stressed that “this was just one of the thousands of attacks that have occurred since 2014”, when the Russian invasion of Ukrainian territory began, and also since February of this year when the war that is still going on began. He also referred to Bucha and Mariupol.
The President of Ukraine claims that a draft of the Special Court’s proposal was presented in kyiv to the diplomats of Ukraine’s partner countries.
Source: Observadora
