Ukraine might hand over cases concerning Russia’s military aggression to ICC – Prosecutor General

EUROPEAN PRAVDA – MONDAY, 1 AUGUST 2022, 20:17

The Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine and the International Criminal Court are discussing the possibility of Ukraine handing over several of the criminal cases concerning Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine to the ICC.

Source: Andrii Kostin, Prosecutor General of Ukraine, on air during the 24/7 national joint newscast, quoted in European Pravda

Quote from Kostin: "Regarding the International Criminal Court, we’re working closely with them and are regularly in touch with Mr Khan, Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. We are currently discussing the possibility of handing over several cases to the International Criminal Court."

"As soon as we reach an agreement, I believe that the Ukrainian citizens will be informed about it."

Details: Earlier, Bloomberg reported that according to its sources, the ICC "is aiming to put forward its first case over alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine as early as this winter". Bloomberg adds that the ICC and Ukraine are in talks about Kyiv delivering at least one Russian prisoner of war, who may be willing to testify against senior Russian commanders, to the court.

Background: A joint investigations team comprising several European judicial authorities was set up in March to gather evidence of alleged Russian crimes in Ukraine. The office of the prosecutor of the ICC is a participant in the investigative team, whose work is supported by Eurojust, the European Union’s agency for criminal justice cooperation.

In late May, members of the investigative team convened a coordination meeting in the Hague in response to calls to bring all those responsible for the war crimes committed in Ukraine to justice.

In July, members of the Ukraine Accountability Conference in the Hague created a Dialogue Group on Accountability for Ukraine.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has said that over 11,500 civilians have become casualties of the Russian war in Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022. As of 12 July, at least 5,024 civilians – including 300 children – have been killed, though the actual numbers may be significantly higher.

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