PACE resolution calls for accelerating the creation of the International Tribunal for Russia

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe calls for speeding up the creation of a Special International Tribunal to prosecute the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

Maria Mezentseva, Chairperson of the Permanent Delegation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to PACE, MP from the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, announced this on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

“Today (October 13 – ed.), after President Zelensky’s speech and debates in PACE, we adopted an important document for Ukraine and all of Europe called “Further escalation of the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine”, the author and speaker of which was our good friend, an ardent supporter of Ukraine , and the oldest and most experienced member of the Assembly, Emmanuelis Zingeris from Lithuania,” the politician noted.

Mezentseva drew attention to the key points of the resolution. Among other things, the Assembly states that Russian aggression must be unequivocally condemned as a crime, as a violation of international law, as a serious threat to international peace and security. “We clearly state that Russia has taken political, military steps that indicate a further escalation of aggression: the so-called referendums held in the Ukrainian regions (Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk and Zaporozhye regions) from September 23 to 27, 2022, are a parody that contrary to international law,” the people’s deputy stressed.

PACE strongly condemns this blatant attempt to incorporate the territory of Ukraine through force and coercion and reiterates its strong support for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Ukrainian state within its internationally recognized borders.

“On October 10, 2022, a barbarous series of rocket attacks on public gardens, playgrounds and residential buildings was carried out in several cities of Ukraine. With these indiscriminate attacks, Russia aims to promote and strengthen its terrorist policy in order to suppress the will of Ukrainians to resist and defend their country and provoke a maximum damage to the civilian population. We especially emphasize this point – the Assembly recognized that the Russian regime is pursuing a state terrorist policy, and therefore is a terrorist in fact, because these are inseparable things,” Mezentseva added.

She noted that the Assembly also calls for the establishment and maintenance of a comprehensive system for holding Russia and its leadership accountable for aggression and violations of international law, human rights and international humanitarian law committed in this context.

In addition, PACE calls on the member states of the Council of Europe to ensure a comprehensive system of responsibility for serious violations of international law resulting from the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, actively cooperating with the Ukrainian authorities on this issue. In this context, the Assembly calls for the acceleration of the establishment of the Special (ad hoc) International Tribunal for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, as well as the establishment of a comprehensive international compensation mechanism, including an international registry of damages.

The Ukrainian parliamentary delegation to PACE, according to Mezentseva, proposed another progressive point: to create a mechanism for constant verification of measures to ensure and protect the system of responsibility for serious violations of Russia’s international law, as well as financially support the restoration of Ukraine.

In turn, the Assembly called on all Member States to financially support the reconstruction of Ukraine and provide it with the necessary air defense systems.

PACE also called on the heads of state and government of the member states of the Council of Europe to gather for the fourth summit in the history of the Organization and include in its agenda the issue of Russia’s responsibility, as well as support for Ukraine. The summit is expected to take place in May 2023. Mezentseva specified that this summit will be held almost 18 years after the previous one.

“An extremely important problem for completing the complete cleansing of respected international institutions from Russia is the issue of their personnel, who perform certain actions in favor of the aggressor state. In particular, we did not ignore this problem – in the light of the seriousness of the international situation, the Assembly calls on international organizations to consider appropriate measures to avoid the use by the Russian regime of personnel of Russian nationality as a means of supporting the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, spreading false information and Russian narratives about it and influencing the political decisions of these organizations,” Mezentseva noted.

At the same time, she added that the Assembly recognized Russia’s threats as heinous and reckless. They violate international law and are incompatible with the obligations of a nuclear state that has a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, which it legally occupies by fraudulent means – through the misappropriation of the membership of the former USSR.