Latest news with #AndriyPerun
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Europe throws support behind Ukraine special tribunal to prosecute Russia
By Andriy Perun and Vladyslav Smilianets LVIV, Ukraine (Reuters) - Europe threw its support on Friday behind a special tribunal to prosecute President Vladimir Putin and other senior Russian officials for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, a show of unity on a day when Moscow marks its "victory day". At a meeting in Ukraine's western city of Lviv, ministers from almost 20 European nations gave their political sign-off to the tribunal, welcoming the completion of the technical work required to set it up. The tribunal will be set up within the framework of the Council of Europe, the continent's leading human rights watchdog that was formed after World War Two to uphold rights and the rule of law. European nations have stepped up their efforts since U.S. President Donald Trump authorised sanctions in February against the International Criminal Court, created to prosecute war crimes when member states are unwilling or unable to do so themselves. Russia denies its troops have committed atrocities in Ukraine since its forces launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukraine says Russian troops have committed many thousands of war crimes. Foreign ministers from the so-called 'core group' of at least 37 countries signed the "Lviv statement", a document marking the conclusion of work done to draft the necessary legal instruments for the tribunal. The tribunal could start operating next year. "This tribunal will ensure that those most responsible for the aggression against Ukraine are held accountable," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told reporters Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was a moral duty for Europe to hold Russia accountable for the war. "A strong tribunal for the crime of aggression can - and must - make any potential aggressor think twice," he said in a video address to the meeting. 'GOOD STEP' An EU official said the tribunal would need to respect the immunity of Putin and his officials while in office but added a prosecutor would be able to investigate and prepare a proposed indictment for when that immunity dropped. Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel welcomed the move. "I think it is a good step because it fills a void that currently exists, which is how can you prosecute the leadership for the crime of aggression against another country," he told Reuters in Kyiv. Earlier, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal led ministers to a military cemetery in Lviv to honour some of the tens of thousands of Ukrainians killed during more than three years of war against Russia. The images were in stark contrast to the show of military might in Moscow, where Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping attended a parade to mark the 80th anniversary of the World War Two defeat of Nazi Germany. Drawing a parallel with the allied victory in World War Two, British foreign minister David Lammy said 80 years later "in Ukraine we are (again) on the frontlines of that fight for freedom ... sending a powerful message to Putin and his cronies and those that stand with him that freedom will prevail". European nations are trying to ramp up the pressure on Putin to accept an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, as proposed by the United States. Separately, Britain on Friday announced a new package of sanctions on Russia's so-called shadow fleet. Ukraine has been pushing for the creation of a special tribunal since early in the conflict, accusing Russian troops of committing many thousands of war crimes, but is also intent on prosecuting Russians for orchestrating the 2022 invasion. The ICC has issued an arrest warrant against Putin over the deportation of Ukrainian children. Moscow says the warrant is meaningless, and "null and void". But the ICC cannot prosecute Russian officials for the crime of aggression in Ukraine because Russia is not a member of the Rome Statute, which created the court, and Ukraine was not a full member at the time of the invasion. For the ICC to prosecute the crime of aggression, members must also sign an additional amendment. (Writing by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ukraine's Catholics express hurt over late Pope's war stance
By Andriy Perun LVIV, Ukraine (Reuters) - Worshippers coming out of a Catholic church service in the Ukrainian city of Lviv on Monday expressed sorrow at the death of Pope Francis, but also lingering hurt that the Roman Catholic pontiff had not taken Ukraine's side in its war with Russia. The pontiff was quoted as saying in a 2024 interview with a Swiss broadcaster that Ukraine should have "the courage of the white flag", and sue for peace to end the conflict with Russia. Those comments differed sharply from the view held by Ukraine's government, and its Western allies, that they have a moral imperative to defeat an invasion by Russia they consider unjust and unprovoked. "There were certain subjective judgments from his side, unfortunately," said Andriy Ben, a former fighter in the Ukrainian military, referring to Pope Francis. "I am not going to comment on this," he said outside the church in Lviv. "I hope that the next pope will be wiser, more enlightened, and better." Another worshipper coming out of the church, 57-year-old Oleh Yakymiak, said the late pontiff did much in his life that was good. "We understand that the good things he did are so much bigger than the painful thing he did to us," said Yakymiak. Most Ukrainians follow the Orthodox Christian faith but about 10% of the population are Catholics, many of them in the west of Ukraine where Lviv is located. Church-goer Marta Binyshyn said she believed whoever the conclave of cardinals in Rome elects to succeed Pope Francis will be an improvement. "We will see in the image of the next pope a person who will bring us more light, a little more help for Ukraine and Ukrainians," she said. An opposition member of the Ukrainian parliament, Sofia Fedyna, published a tribute to the late pope on social media platform Telegram, but also said some of his statements had left Ukrainians doubting that he supported them. "I myself was critical of some of the statements, because one cannot equate and reconcile the victim and the criminal at the moment of committing the crime. Therefore, I hope that the next Pope will stand up for justice!," she wrote. Since Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the pope has condemned the war as an unjustified act of aggression and has called Ukraine a "martyred nation." He made appeals for peace at nearly every public appearance, at least twice a week. He also urged the head of the Russian Orthodox church, who is closely aligned with the Russian state, not to become the Kremlin's "altar boy". Despite that, he disappointed many Ukrainians by not explicitly condemning Russian leader Vladimir Putin as the aggressor. He also caused anger by referring to the "great Russian empire" built by past rulers Peter I and Catherine II, who are revered in Russia but seen by many in Ukraine as leading the subjugation of their country. Ukraine's Catholic bishops told the pope at a meeting in Rome those comments had caused them great pain. Russia says that it was forced to launch what it calls a special military operation in Ukraine because its national security was threatened by the NATO alliance encroaching on its borders. It has also said it was fighting to rid Ukraine of what he termed a "neo-Nazi regime" in Kyiv. (Additional reporting by Alina Smutko and Sergiy Karazy; Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Daren Butler)
