The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has adopted a decision approving its demands for the establishment of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression: Russia and Belarus will be jointly responsible for the crimes. Russian official rhetoric used to justify a full-scale invasion and aggression against Ukraine has signs of public incitement to genocide and may indicate a genocidal intent to destroy the Ukrainian national group as such or at least part of it, Ukrinform reports.
"The Assembly notes that there is growing evidence that the Russian official rhetoric used to justify the full-scale invasion and aggression against Ukraine, the so-called process of 'de-Ukrainization' "bears signs of public incitement to genocide or reveals a genocidal intention to destroy the Ukrainian national group as such or at least part of it," reads the resolution "Legal and human rights aspects of the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine" adopted on Thursday by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
PACE pointed out that the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, to which both Ukraine and the Russian Federation are parties, prohibits direct and public incitement to commit genocide and attempts to commit genocide.
"It (PACE - ed.) also notes with extreme concern that certain acts committed by Russian forces against Ukrainian civilians may fall within the scope of Article II of the Convention, such as the killing and forcible transfer of children from one group to another group for the purpose of russification through adoption by Russian families and/or transfer to Russian-run orphanages or residential institutions such as summer camps," the document says.
The resolution also mentions "possible genocide" in Ukraine three times. In particular, the text refers to Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine and "the atrocities resulting from it (war crimes, crimes against humanity and possible genocide)." It also contains a provision that the establishment of an international special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine should not affect "the exercise by the latter of jurisdiction over war crimes, crimes against humanity and possible genocide committed in the context of the ongoing aggression." In addition, the resolution mentions the existence of international and national mechanisms to investigate, prosecute and, if necessary, "punish war crimes, crimes against humanity and possible genocide committed during the ongoing war."
In the resolution, the PACE recalled that all states parties to the Genocide Convention "have an obligation to punish genocide". "According to the interpretation of the International Court of Justice, they are also obliged to prevent genocide and have a corresponding duty to act, which arises when a State learns or should have learned of the existence of a grave threat of genocide," the document says.
Last week, the European Parliament decided to establish a special tribunal to try the leadership of Russia and Belarus for crimes in Ukraine. 472 deputies voted in favour of the resolution.