The international coalition agrees with the special court for the crime of aggression against Ukraine

On May 9, 2025, representatives of state and international institutions in LVIV, Ukraine, met to formally support the establishment of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. In accordance with the LVIV declaration adopted during the day, the group welcomed the completion of the preparatory work that are necessary to build a special tribunal within the Council of Europe. They undertook to establish the special tribunal, to support the quick start of his operations and support in his work. This meeting takes place just a few days before the meeting of the Minister of Councilor from May 13th to 14th, 2025, in which the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha submits a letter in which the formal approval of the contract for creating the tribunal is requested.

This is an important step towards justice for Russia's attack on Ukraine. While many of the crimes committed by Putin and his troops are already being examined and persecuted, be it through domestic or international tribunals, the crime of aggression still has to be tackled with comprehensive answers. For example, while the International Criminal Court (ICC) has powers of examining all genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in the field of Ukraine, his responsibility in relation to the crime of aggression against Ukraine cannot exercise. This is because the act of aggression is committed by Russia, a state that is not a party of the Rome statute. An option would be that the UN Security Council forwards the situation to the ICC. However, such an attempt would have been blocked by Russia, a constant member of the UN Security Council with a Veto law. Therefore, states and experts have examined other ways to ensure that the mother of all crimes in Ukraine – the crime of aggression – does not deprive the accountability.

The establishment of the tribunal will be based on an agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe. The Council of Europe has now set up the necessary framework for the establishment of the special court, which will derive its responsibility from Ukraine. The tribunal will have the authority to examine, follow and try to examine Russian political and military leaders who have the greatest responsibility for aggression crimes against Ukraine. As soon as the special court has been set up, the Ukrainian national authorities can refer on current domestic investigations and law enforcement measures in connection with the aggression crime to the public prosecutor's office of the special court. The work carried out in the context of the work in the International Center for the Persecution of the Aggression Break (ICPA), which is pursued in the Eurojust, European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, will also be transferred to the public prosecutor's office of the special court. The ICPA officially started operations in July 2023 in Euro Just and supported the preparation of the crime of aggression cases by securing evidence and facilitating the process of falling in an early stage. The ICPA enables independent prosecutors from different countries to work together, to quickly and efficiently exchange evidence and to agree on a common strategy for investigative and law enforcement lawyers. In addition to Ukraine, five members of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Romania) take part in the starting phase of the ICPA.

Russia's crimes against Ukraine require extensive answers, with all tools being used in the toolbox. This concludes domestic investigations and law enforcement measures in Ukraine and in other countries (including those based on the principle of universal responsibility) and examinations that were carried out by the ICC, among other things. However, the crime of aggression, the crime, which began before the investigation and criminal war crimes and crimes against humanity, had to be met with the correct answers. The special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine is the answer that the world has to see to send Putin a powerful message, but also others with similar efforts that the crime cannot get through.