Russia and its leadership must be held accountable for its continuing crimes and already committed as a result of the invasion and aggression in Ukraine. This is an irrefutable axiom for every conscious and thinking person, because the criminal must be punished. It became the main message during the United for Justice International Conference, which took place in early March in Ukraine.
It resulted in the signing of an agreement on the establishment of the International Center for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression on March 4. Furthermore, it will start operating already this summer in The Hague. The Center will collect evidence of war crimes committed by the Russians. For this purpose the Joint Investigative Team of Eurojust was also set up, which includes the International Criminal Court, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Estonia, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Romania. The creation of the team was unanimously supported by the European Commission. The EU also supports the role of the International Criminal Court and the idea of creating a special tribunal. According to the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, the signing of the agreement within the framework of the United for Justice Conference was the first step on the way to justice for Ukraine.
More and more people in the world support the idea of a special tribunal for the Russian Federation. According to the Ukrainian side, more than 20 states have already joined the coalition to create the tribunal. States are not only joining the discussion, but the conversation itself about the future tribunal is becoming more concrete and substantive. This is confirmed by the results of the United for Justice Conference, the establishment of the Joint Investigative Team of Eurojust and the International Center for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression. Undoubtedly, the more countries join the process of advocating on international platforms for the fair punishment of the Russian Federation for the crimes committed, the more powerful this movement will become and the faster its consequences will be. It is simply unacceptable to stand aside today, because Russia and Putin must answer for their terrible crimes. The European Union, of which Cyprus is a part, continues to work to ensure that Putin and his comrades receive a fair punishment. The work of the International Center will be a certain milestone on the way to the creation of a Special Tribunal to condemn the crime of aggression by the Russian political and military elite against Ukraine. The creation of a tribunal to punish the highest military and political leadership of the Russian Federation for the crime of aggression is one of the key points of the system of full responsibility of the aggressor for all exposed crimes against Ukraine. It is known that several options for the creation of a special tribunal are being considered, but the best one, from the Ukrainian point of view, is the creation of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression on the basis of a multilateral international treaty based on the example of the Nuremberg Tribunal. The European Union should contribute not only to the restoration of peace on the continent, but also to the establishment of justice and punishment for all the crimes and grief that the Russian occupiers brought with them to the Ukrainian land.
Cyprus strongly supports Ukraine on many international political platforms, provides significant humanitarian aid, shares the Ukrainian Peace Formula and demonstrates readiness to work together until the end of Russian aggression. Cyprus is also among the member states of the International Criminal Court that have filed lawsuits against Russia for its war in Ukraine. All these are unconditional signs of support and help. Cyprus can bring victory closer and help Ukrainians to obtain justice directly by joining the work of the Joint Investigative Team of Eurojust and the International Center for the Prosecution of Crimes of Aggression. Here we should not forget that not only the security and sovereignty of one country, but much more is at stake in the terrorist war of the Russian Federation on the territory of independent and unconquered Ukraine. Absolute evil will be defeated and punished only by joint efforts.