UKRAINE, KYIV, Jul 15 — Verkhovna Rada ratified the agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe on the establishment of a Special Tribunal that will allow for the prosecution of Russian senior political and military leaders for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, including in absentia, said Yaroslav Zhelezniak, Ukrainian lawmaker. 

On June 25, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, signed an agreement on establishing a Special Tribunal. 

As of July 15, 39 countries, along with the Council of Europe and the EU, have joined the establishment of the Tribunal.

The Tribunal cannot prosecute the Russian “troika”, the president, Prime Minister, and foreign minister while they hold diplomatic immunity and remain in power.

International Criminal Court (ICC) will investigate Russian war crimes — it has already released arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova for the forced deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, as well as crimes against humanity and genocide in Ukraine. 

The crime of aggression involves the use of armed force against another state in violation of the United Nations Charter. 

The ICC is currently unable to address the crime of aggression, though, due to jurisdictional limitations. The Special Tribunal is created with the aim to fill this gap. 

Earlier, Gwara wrote about the challenges of establishing this Tribunal, including Vladimir Putin’s and the rest of the “troika” ’s immunity.  

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