Russian war crimes: Prosecutor General says some ICC warrants may be secret

Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andr Kostin said this in a commentary to an Ukrinform correspondent in The Hague.

"We already have 121 verdicts of Ukrainian courts on war crimes committed by the Russian military in Ukraine," Kostin said.

He has noted that the International Criminal Court can prosecute individuals who are beyond the reach of Ukrainian justice.

According to him, it is very important that the ICC arrest warrants for four high-ranking Russian military officers were issued for committing not only war crimes but also crimes against humanity. "Unfortunately, our Criminal Code lacks an article defining a crime against humanity. Therefore, in this situation, the ICC serves as a supplementary judicial institution, that is, reinforcing our efforts," the Prosecutor General noted.

At the same time, he underscored that 99% of all criminal proceedings on war crimes will be investigated by Ukraine, and the cases will be heard in Ukrainian courts.

“In certain instances, we will also submit certain cases to the International Criminal Court, provided that they can investigate them. Then, when we believe that it is worthwhile for particular criminal proceedings to be initiated at the international level, taking into account, factors such as the extent of the atrocities perpetrated by the Russian criminal regime will be taken into account," Kostin said.

Read also: Ukraine, ICC simultaneously investigating Russia's July 8 missile attack

He also noted that information on ICC arrest warrants is not always published because they are secret.

“In some instances, it (information about the arrest warrant – ed.) is published, whereas in other cases it may not be made public. And this could mean that another person from the Russian criminal regime who he or she can travel somewhere could be arrested in any of the countries that are parties to the Rome Statute… It is possible that some of the warrants will be non-public. This is a highly significant develment, as there is currently no established procedure for lifting the moratorium on arrests," the Prosecutor General explained.

As reported by Ukrinform, on March 17, 2023, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court announced that arrest warrants had been issued for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Children's Ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova in the context of the situation in Ukraine.

On March 5, 2024, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber announced the issuance of arrest warrants for Russian Long-Range Aviation Commander Sergey Kobylash and Russian Black Sea Fleet Commander Viktor Sokov, and on June 24, arrest warrants for Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov in the context of the situation in Ukraine for alleged international crimes committed at least from October 10, 2022 to March 9, 2023.

Photo: PGO