A group to hold Russia accountable for crimes set up in The Hague
The participants of the conference on accountability for Russian crimes during the war in Ukraine created a Dialogue Group on Accountability for Ukraine.
The conference in The Hague, organized by the Government of the Netherlands, the Office of the ICC prosecutor and the European Commission, provided an opportunity to discuss at the highest level concrete steps and forthcoming efforts.
This is reported in the official Telegram channel of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Iryna Venediktova.
It is noted that Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova took part in the Ukraine Accountability Conference in The Hague. The 45 participating countries agreed on the Political Declaration on cooperation to achieve a common result. The Dialogue Group created within this event should unite national, European and international initiatives on documentation and justice for international crimes. The groupäs work in support of Ukraine will be guided by the Office of the Prosecutor General.
“The document also notes the work of Ukrainian prosecutors and lawmen in documenting and investigating international crimes in cooperation with the international community, as well as bringing to justice those who commit atrocities in Ukraine,” the statement says.
“Justice and accountability are fundamental to achieving peace and security. So, the best counteraction to Russia’s actions are two things. The first is that the international community must ensure Ukraine’s victory. The second is that those who commit international crimes must be held accountable,” said Irina Venediktova during her speech at the conference.
The Prosecutor General stated that the democratic world faces a serious enemy, which is a rogue state that seeks to undermine international order.
“Ending impunity for core international crimes is our shared responsibility. Although Ukraine has demonstrated that it can handle the burden of investigations and prosecutions, given the scale and severity of these crimes, justice for the victims can only be achieved in symbiosis with the international community,” Venediktova noted.
Iryna Venediktova also announced that the United States is ready to send a team of prosecutors to Ukraine to work on the scenes of war crimes committed by Russian invaders. She noted that within the conference, she had talked about practical support with US partners. She also had a productive discussion about next steps with Ambassador-at-Large for the State Department's Office of Global Criminal Justice, Beth Van Scack, and the legendary “Nazi hunter” Eli Rosenbaum of the US Department of Justice.
Author - Anastasiya Glotova, 15/07/2022
