Rada Asks UN, EU And Council Of Europe To Create Special Tribunal For Russia

The Verkhovna Rada appealed to the United Nations, the parliaments and governments of its member states, the European Union, and the Council of Europe regarding the creation of a special international tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

283 MPs voted for the adoption of the draft resolution 8094, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

By the adopted document, the parliamentarians called on the international community of states to use all possible and available tools and opportunities in order to create pressure on the political and military leadership of the Russian Federation, which will much sooner force it to abandon the continuation of armed aggression against Ukraine, as well as to use the provisions on universal jurisdiction within its own borders of criminal legislation, to prosecute persons guilty of committing the most serious international crimes on the territory of Ukraine.

The Verkhovna Rada also calls on the UN, the parliaments and governments of its member states, the EU, and the Council of Europe to create a special tribunal for the Russian Federation, which will:

• have jurisdiction over the investigation and prosecution of the crime of aggression against Ukraine, allegedly committed by the highest political and military leadership of the Russian Federation;
• apply the definition of the crime of aggression enshrined in customary international law, in the Rome Statute of the ICC;
• have jurisdiction over individuals who exercise effective control over or direct the political or military actions of the state;
• have the authority to issue international arrest warrants and not be limited by the absolute and/or functional immunity of heads of state and government and other state officials;
• have jurisdiction over all events starting from February 2014, the beginning of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.

Also, the Verkhovna Rada calls on the above-mentioned organizations to intensify their efforts to provide full support for the establishment of such a special tribunal by adopting relevant legal acts, as well as ensuring participation in its work, full cooperation with the future special tribunal, allocation of the maximum possible human and financial resources for its activities.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the Verkhovna Rada also appointed Andrii Pyshnyi as the head of the National Bank at the meeting today.