THE HAGUE, Netherlands: In a firm declaration on Tuesday, Ukraine emphasized that the United Nations’ highest court possesses the jurisdiction to address a case alleging Moscow’s abuse of the genocide convention as a justification for its devastating invasion in the previous year.
Kyiv is seeking an order from the judges at the International Court of Justice to compel Russia to cease its attacks and provide reparations. However, there are doubts regarding Moscow’s willingness to comply, given its prior defiance of a binding interim order issued by the court in March last year, which demanded an end to the invasion.
The defiance exhibited by Russia is a direct assault on the authority of this court. Each missile fired by Russia at our cities is a clear defiance of this court, stated Anton Korynevych, the leader of Ukraine’s legal team, addressing the 16-judge panel.
The case was promptly filed by Kyiv after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, arguing that the attack was founded on false allegations of genocide in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of eastern Ukraine.
Russia is engaging in war against my country under the pretense of this grievous falsehood, claiming that Ukraine is committing genocide against its own people, Korynevych remarked. He added, This falsehood is Russia’s justification for aggression and conquest. Russia has failed to provide any credible evidence, for it simply cannot. In reality, Russia has distorted the essence of the Genocide Convention.
Russia presented its objections to the case on Monday, with Gennady Kuzmin, the leader of Moscow’s legal team, dismissing it as hopelessly flawed and inconsistent with the established jurisprudence of this court.
Ukraine’s case centers on the 1948 Genocide Convention, ratified by both Kyiv and Moscow. The convention contains a provision allowing nations with disputes based on its provisions to present these disputes to the World Court. Russia contests the existence of a dispute, a position that Ukraine firmly opposes.
Distinguishing itself from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which prosecutes individuals for offenses like war crimes and crimes against humanity, the International Court of Justice adjudicates disputes between nations.
In an exceptional display of international solidarity, 32 of Ukraine’s allies are slated to make supportive statements on Wednesday regarding Kyiv’s legal arguments.
The panel of international judges at the court is anticipated to take several weeks or even months to arrive at a decision regarding the case’s viability. Should the case proceed, a final ruling is likely years away.
In his opening statement, Korynevych underscored the stakes for Ukraine, emphasizing that 573 days ago, Russia initiated a brutal, all-encompassing military assault on Ukraine. This constitutes a war aimed at annihilation. Russia denies the very existence of the Ukrainian people and seeks to obliterate us from the map.
