Ministers of Justice of the Council of Europe adopt declaration on Ukraine; Armenia not joined

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The Ministers of Justice of the Member States of the Council of Europe  have adopted a declaration following the conference titled “Towards Accountability for International Crimes Committed in Ukraine''.

The Declaration states: “We, the Ministers of Justice of the Member States of the Council of Europe, convened in Vilnius, Lithuania, under the auspices of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, to address critical justice and accountability issues related to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.’’

With the declaration, the ministers commended the process of Ukraine’s ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court as an important step forward for international law and international justice.

“We strongly support the investigation of the International Criminal Court aimed at bringing to justice perpetrators of international crimes within its jurisdiction committed on the territory of Ukraine. We call on all States to assist the Court in cooperating with its ongoing investigation and prosecuting those responsible,” it reads.

Additionally they reaffirmed the necessity of establishing an effective Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, capable of delivering justice by holding accountable those who bear the greatest responsibility. 

The list of member and observer countries that supported the declaration has also been published. Among them are Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Italy, Japan, Moldova, Spain, Switzerland, San Marino, and other countries. Armenia is not among them.