Ukraine calls for international investigation into crimes in the Donbas
At the 71st session of the UN General Assembly, the Ukrainian delegation to the UN made a statement calling for the International Criminal Court to investigate crimes in the East of Ukraine and bring to justice those responsible for mass killings.
Ukrinform quoted the statement of Ukrainian diplomats as saying “In light of the current difficult situation within and around Ukraine we fully recognize that there is an urgent need to ensure global jurisdiction, legitimacy and the International Criminal Court’s support.”
The document notes that as far back as 2014, Ukraine has been suffering from continued Russian “armed aggression” as well as separatists, thus, such actions are “a serious crime against humanity and a war crime which falls under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.”
Ukraine has also filed a claim concerning crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by Russian top officials and leaders of the self- proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics which led to extremely grave consequences and mass killings of Ukrainians. This document was submitted in September 2015 in accordance with article 12 (3) of the Rome Statute, though Kiev has yet to sign the Statute.
“We believe, that the International Criminal Court will be one of the best tools in ensuring that all the perpetrators of international crimes are brought to justice, that massive human rights violations are acknowledged and that victims will obtain compensation for their suffering,” the document states.
In October 2015, over 300 items of evidence of war crimes in the Donbas were presented to The Hague Tribunal. In April, a substantive 153-page report was submitted to the International Criminal Court at The Hague.