Kremlin stays silent on EU's effort to establish special tribunal for Russia

The Kremlin has chosen not to respond to the European Union's initiative for the establishment of an “anti-Russian tribunal” in light of the ongoing conflict with Ukraine.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, addressed the issue, expressing the Russian government's stance on the matter, Caliber.Az reports citing Russian media.

When asked for a reaction to the EU's proposal, Peskov simply stated, “We are not reacting to this.”

The EU’s push for such a tribunal has been part of its broader efforts to hold Russia accountable for actions in Ukraine, particularly in relation to alleged war crimes. However, Moscow has consistently denied the charges and dismissed calls for international legal action against its leadership.

To recap, Ukraine has reached a significant milestone in the establishment of a special tribunal to prosecute Russia for its crime of aggression. After over two and a half years of diligent work, the initiative is now entering its final phase, according to Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.

"The most important thing for us is to uphold the principle of the inevitability of punishment, for everyone. Including the so-called trinity. I mean the president of the Russian Federation, the Russian prime minister, and the foreign minister of Russia. All of them are international war criminals," Sybiha stated.

He emphasized that the establishment of the tribunal is designed to deliver appropriate verdicts in the future, targeting those at the highest levels of Russia's government.

The special tribunal is slated to be based in The Hague, known as the international hub for law and accountability. While the International Criminal Court (ICC) has already issued six arrest warrants for key figures within Russia’s military-political leadership, its jurisdiction is limited as Russia has not ratified the Rome Statute, which governs the ICC's actions.

In response to this limitation, Ukraine has spearheaded the initiative for a specialized tribunal to prosecute Russia's aggression. To date, 44 countries have joined Ukraine in this effort, signaling widespread international support for the initiative.

A meeting of the coalition of states supporting the tribunal is currently taking place in Lviv, with European ministers and EU leadership lending their political approval to the project. Luxembourg's Foreign Minister, Xavier Bettel, confirmed that the tribunal is set to be officially launched next week, marking a significant step towards holding Russia accountable for its actions in Ukraine.

By Vafa Guliyeva