Three years after the series of crimes perpetrated by the Russian army in Boutcha, the representatives of the political groups in the European Parliament have expressed their views on the EU’s response to Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine.
Prefacing the session, which revealed the support of a majority of elected representatives for a trial of those responsible, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, declared that “impunity for war crimes is frankly impossible, as long as we do the necessary work”.
On the creation of a “special tribunal” for the crime of aggression, she said: “The legal experts have recently finalised the technical negotiations for the court. The Council of Europe will soon begin the political review process for the documents needed to establish the tribunal, including its draft statute.
This special court should complement the efforts of the International Criminal Court by specifically trying those responsible for the crime of aggression (see EUROPE 13572/14).
Sandra Kalniete (EPP, Latvian) said that “Putin and his henchmen must understand that there is no statute of limitations on war crimes”.
Similarly, Dutch MEP Thijs Reuten (S&D) said that “without justice, there will be no lasting peace”. To this end, he called for “speeding up [the setting up of] the tribunal for the crime of aggression” and “confiscating the frozen assets” for Ukraine.
For Renew Europe, Petras Auštrevičius (Lithuanian) said that “Russia cannot escape a new Nuremberg Trial”, adding that justice “must be done, regardless of a ceasefire or other negotiations”.
Villy Søvndal (Greens/EFA, Danish) denounced “a systematic campaign of terror”, to combat which “Russia should be weakened and Ukraine's independence strengthened by all available legal means”.
For the ECR group, Michał Dworczyk (Polish) demanded “a specific resolution” on crimes against civilians and children, referring to the UN report on Russian abuses.
He called on the European Parliament “not to be content with mere declarations”.
The co-president of The Left Group, Martin Schirdewan (German), questioned Kaja Kallas on the EU’s diplomatic weakness. And called for “a just and lasting peace process” that respects international law.
René Aust (ESN, German) expressed concern about “an arms race”, although he condemned Russian “war crimes”. Anders Vistisen (PfE, Danish) acknowledged the horror of these crimes, but noted that historically, crimes have only been judged after military victories, which he finds problematic.
Seeing “no realistic prospect of an invasion of Moscow by Ukraine”, he described the debate as “redundant”. “So let’s concentrate on helping Ukraine to preserve what it has, instead of holding noble debates that will lead nowhere”, he urged.
“The EU must be unwavering in its commitment to demand accountability for all violations of international law”, Kaja Kallas hammered home following the statements by the group leaders. (Original version in French by Nithya Paquiry)