“Insignificant initiatives”: how Europe is promoting the idea of ​​creating a “tribunal” for Russia in Ukraine

Josep Borrell, head of the EU foreign policy service, intends to present to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) the European Commission's initiative on an international tribunal for Russia in connection with its actions in Ukraine.

According to him, the proposal will be made public at a meeting dedicated to bringing the Russian Federation to justice for the crimes allegedly committed by it on the territory of the neighboring republic.

“I will submit a proposal ... (to the European Commission. -

) to support the work of the International Criminal Court ... to support the Prosecutor General of Ukraine ... and support the proposal (on the creation. -

) of a special tribunal dedicated to ... war crimes in Ukraine, "said Borrell at a meeting of heads of diplomatic departments of the OSCE countries in the Polish city of Lodz.

Earlier, on November 30, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, came up with the idea of ​​organizing an international court for Russia under the auspices of the UN.

“We are ready to start working with the international community to secure the widest possible international support for the creation of such a court,” she said in a video message on Twitter.

However, the implementation of the EC proposal should be preceded by its coordination with the EU member states and the UN member states, Josep Borrell noted.

“It is necessary to discuss and first obtain the approval of the EU member states, and then get support from the UN,” he said.

Looking for loopholes

As political analysts state, the West has recently been actively promoting the idea of ​​bringing Russia to "responsibility" for the events in Ukraine.

Thus, on October 13, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) approved a resolution pointing to the need for the speedy creation of an international tribunal for the Russian Federation.

In addition, the document recommends “the establishment of a system to study measures to ensure that Russia is held accountable for its alleged violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.”

Following a declaration with similar recommendations on November 21, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly adopted.

This resolution notes that a “tribunal” is needed for a trial on the fact of “Russian aggression”.

With the help of such a mechanism, the countries of the alliance plan to hold the Russian Federation accountable, as well as force it to compensate for the damage.

Josep Borrell also pointed out the need to impose obligations on Russia to restore Ukraine, speaking on December 1 to colleagues from the OSCE countries in Poland.

In his opinion, the damage suffered by Kyiv can be paid for, among other things, at the expense of Russian assets frozen in Europe.

“We seized almost €20 billion from the oligarchs and people who support Russia.

In addition, we control approximately €300 billion in financial resources from the Central Bank of Russia.

This money must be used to restore Ukraine,” said the head of European diplomacy.

At the same time, he acknowledged the existence of legal obstacles to ensure that Western countries can painlessly and legally justify confiscate foreign financial resources of the Russian Federation.

Individual EU countries, including France, are also trying to implement the initiative to organize a “tribunal” for Russia.

“As for the proposal to create a special tribunal for crimes related to Russian aggression in Ukraine, we have begun working with our European and Ukrainian partners,” the republic’s Foreign Ministry said.

The department also noted that Paris has mobilized its resources in support of both the Ukrainian justice system and the International Criminal Court, allegedly authorized to conduct impartial and independent investigations.

• French Ministry of Foreign Affairs

• Gettyimages.ru

• © Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency

Illegitimate mechanism

In Russia, the desire of Western states to organize such a trial was sharply criticized.

Thus, Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's permanent representative to the UN, in an interview with journalists on November 30, noted that such initiatives are an attempt to give some legitimacy to lawlessness against Moscow.

“This is an example of what is called “international order based on rules”.

They (West. -

) come up with these “rules”, then pass them off as universal, and also try to hide behind the authority of the UN, ”said the diplomat.

In turn, the press secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov, in a media comment on December 1, emphasized that the creation of a “tribunal” in the West in Ukraine would only be condemned.

“As for attempts to establish some kind of tribunals, they will not have any legitimacy, will not be accepted by us and will be condemned by us,” he told reporters.

Meanwhile, the UN noted that they are aware of the initiative of Western countries regarding a special court for Russia under the auspices of an international organization.

“Any decision on the establishment of such a tribunal, with or without the participation of the UN, remains with the member states,” Stéphane Dujarric, representative of the UN Secretary General, explained at a briefing on November 30.

• Representative of the UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric

• Gettyimages.ru

• © Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket

"Ideas dictated by the Americans"

Experts interviewed by RT agree that all Western initiatives regarding the anti-Russian tribunal are a direct violation of international law.

“I am sure that the current ideas of the European Commission and Borrell are dictated by the Americans.

After all, Brussels does not have any independence.

At the same time, the West continues to methodically ignore the gross violations of humanitarian law by Kyiv, its war crimes and provocations, ”Konstantin Dolgov, deputy chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy, said in an interview with RT.

However, no matter what the West comes up with, trying to impose any “responsibility” for the events in Ukraine on the Russian Federation, all this will have no effect on Moscow, the senator believes.

“Their initiatives are insignificant both from the political and legal points of view.

The Russian Federation, for its part, will continue to report to the world community, including the OSCE, about the crimes committed by Ukraine.

Fortunately, there is plenty of data and facts about them,” Dolgov added.

In turn, Professor of the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Foreign Ministry Vladimir Vinokurov, in a conversation with RT, noted that all anti-Russian special tribunals in Ukraine are designed to solve the specific task of gaining access to Russian assets frozen abroad.

“This is a banal attempt to legalize theft.

To do this, the West will try to use its influence on international platforms.

However, they clearly do not take into account that the further they work in this direction, the more they will receive refusals from countries voting in the UN that either support the Russian Federation or refrain from expressing their position, ”the expert believes.

• Flags of EU countries

• Gettyimages.ru

• © Dutchy

According to him, this trend was demonstrated by the vote at the UN General Assembly on the recent resolution against Russia regarding reparations in favor of Ukraine.

“Despite the fact that the document was nevertheless adopted, the countries whose population makes up most of the planet showed their disapproval of financial repression, which they are trying to smuggle without any legal justification,” Vinokurov recalled.

The fact that the West is only seeking to legitimize the appropriation of Russian assets by holding pseudo-tribunals is also said by Pavel Feldman, Associate Professor of the Academy of Labor and Social Relations, Candidate of Political Sciences.

“They need legal grounds to confiscate Russian property.

And on their territory, Western countries can organize some kind of trial for the Russian Federation.

Another thing is that it will not have any legitimate grounds, and Russia will not obey its decisions.

However, this “court” can give the appearance of the legitimacy of the West’s claims to foreign assets of the Russian Federation, ”he explained in a comment to RT.

However, Washington and Brussels should not expect such a "tribunal" to be pushed through the UN, since the decision on it will have to be made at the Security Council, Feldman says.

According to Vladimir Vinokurov, the Western countries bear almost the greatest responsibility for the events in Ukraine, since it was they who brought the situation to the point of no return.

“Therefore, they simply do not have any right to organize legal proceedings against Russia, including the moral one.

Moreover, they themselves need to be tried for supporting the coup in Ukraine, crimes on the Maidan and against the inhabitants of Donbass, ”the analyst concluded.