US supports move to prosecute Putin for ‘crime against peace’ over war in Ukraine

AFP | Washington                                                   

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com     

The US yesterday threw support behind a special international tribunal to try Russia for “aggression” against Ukraine, building momentum to prosecute the crime for the first time since the aftermath of World War II.

The European Union has already advocated for a special tribunal, which could bring fresh charges against President Vladimir Putin and would be the latest legal salvo after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for him over alleged war crimes.

A State Department spokesperson said yesterday that the US would work with allies to set up a “special tribunal on the crime of aggression” over Russia’s February 2022 invasion of its neighbor.

“We envision such a court having significant international support – particularly from our partners in Europe – and ideally located in another country in Europe.”

Beth Van Schaack, the US ambassador-at-large for global criminal justice, said the US wanted the court to have international personnel and resources.

“We believe an internationalized court that is rooted in Ukraine’s judicial system, but that also includes international elements, will provide the clearest path to establishing a new tribunal and maximising our chances of achieving meaningful accountability,” she said in a speech on Monday at the Catholic University of America.

“We are committed to working with Ukraine and peace-loving countries around the world to stand up, staff and resource such a tribunal in a way that will achieve comprehensive accountability for the international crimes being committed in Ukraine,” she said.

It was the first time that the US – which has fraught relations with the ICC – has explicitly supported a special tribunal on Ukraine. The European Union in November floated the idea of a tribunal, which was backed formally in January by a vote of the European Parliament.

The crime of aggression, then known as a crime against peace, was last prosecuted against a country in the aftermath of World War II and formed a basis of the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials of Nazi Germany and imperial Japan.