Side-event: Panel discussion “Creating Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine”
By Elvīra Cupika-Mavrina
New York, 8 December 2022
Distinguished colleagues,
I would like to commend Ukraine’s legal team that uses all the relevant international mechanisms and tools designed to ensure peaceful settlement of disputes and to ensure accountability of States, as well as individual accountability for international crimes. We see the engagement of these mechanisms as a reaffirmation of their relevance and effectiveness. But we also need to assure that the full spectrum of accountability is covered. That the accountability is comprehensive.
Jane Adams was right - True peace is not merely the absence of war, it is the presence of justice.
Currently we all are witnessing the most serious crimes of international concern taking place in Ukraine, whose unimaginable consequences horrify international community.
While the opened investigation by the Prosecutor of the ICC regarding alleged atrocity crimes in Ukraine proves the Court’s commitment to ensure rules-based international order, the Court is unable to exercise jurisdiction over the crime of Russia’s aggression committed against Ukraine.
To prevent impunity, this accountability gap must be closed, and we believe that an ad hoc Special Tribunal would be the most appropriate tool to complement the jurisdiction of the Court.
While it won’t be easy to establish Special Tribunal because of complex legal issues such as immunities and temporal jurisdiction, those issues must be seen as legal challenges that strong political will and great lawyers will resolve. With that in mind, we must establish Special Tribunal without any unnecessary hesitation. It is important that the ad hoc special tribunal effectively complements the work of the ICC.
Further, it is truly important that the Special Tribunal is established under the auspices of the UN, which is the world’s most democratic and truly the only universal global organization. Such support would provide greater legitimacy for the Special Tribunal and would combat Russia’s ongoing attempts to tarnish the idea of Special Tribunal and to escape any kind of accountability for their heinous crimes committed in Ukraine
As co-founder of the Group of Friends of Accountability, Latvia is dedicated to strengthen accountability, fight impunity and gather support of international community to establish Special Tribunal that will bring justice to Ukraine.
Let’s not forget - the main purpose of the UN is to maintain international peace and security and currently, whole world is paying close attention to our ability or inability to uphold the values that are vested in the UN Charter. Any indications of indecisiveness, deceitfulness and inability to stand for justice will cause grave damage to the whole UN system.
We can’t afford to lose our credibility, not now, not ever.
I thank you.