ICC Prosecutor Karim A. A. Khan KC concludes sixth visit to Ukraine: “Amidst conflict, the law can unify our response to atrocities”
Today, I completed my sixth official visit to Ukraine. I leave more convinced than ever that our common work, together with all partners in this situation, will allow us to demonstrate how justice can and must play a central role in confronting aggression and combatting attempts to wield unbridled power. It is remarkable that amidst bombs and abductions, as children are targeted and intentional suffering is inflicted against civilians, the people and authorities of Ukraine have set an example by turning to the law as their ally.
From my engagement with survivors at sites of alleged crimes, through my dialogue with Ukrainian authorities including my valued counterpart Andriy Kostin, Prosecutor General of Ukraine, and in my discussions with the team of investigators, analysts and support staff now based in the country office of the International Criminal Court in Ukraine, it is clear: we have never been firmer, more united and more focused on delivering justice for international crimes inflicted in the Ukraine situation.
During my visit, I was pleased to meet with their excellencies, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Andrii Sybiha, Minister for Foreign Affairs, whom I congratulated on his recent appointment. In those meetings, I strongly welcomed the decision of the President, now approved by the Ukrainian Parliament, to ratify the Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the International Criminal Court.
We should not underestimate the significance of this moment. That a State, amidst the most intense heat of conflict turns ever more firmly towards the law, is something to recognise and applaud. This decision by Ukraine, especially at this moment, strengthens not only the protection that international law can provide to the people of Ukraine, but to all people subjected to aggression, tyranny and atrocities globally. It is a powerful act of unity and solidarity at a time when many seek to drive a wedge between those that believe in the rule of law.
This collective spirit and commitment to common action towards accountability was also clearly reflected at the United for Justice Conference I had the honour to attend with Prosecutor General Kostin and other national Attorneys General, Ministers of Justice and Prosecutor-Generals, as well as at the 4th Summit of First Ladies and Gentlemen, to which I was so kindly invited by her Excellency Olena Zelenska, First Lady of Ukraine. At both events, a clear message was sent on the power of the law to insist on the common value of all people, of all children, of all lives. Every human life must be seen to have equal value under the law.
As always, it was my engagement with survivors that gave the clearest view of the need for evermore effective action through our investigations on the ground. At Okhmatdyt National Children’s Hospital, I met with nurses who were impacted by the missile strike on 8 July this year as they stayed behind to finish the dialysis treatments being provided to children. They told me of their colleague who, as she sought to provide the children on the intensive care ward with the support they need, as she struggled to save lives, was killed in the missile strike.
My Office is continuing its investigations into crimes against and affecting children and into attacks on civilian objects in Ukraine.
At Hostomel, outside Kyiv, I heard from victims who told me of being held as hostages in an industrial freezer with no light, tortured and then illegally transferred to the Russian Federation. Crimes committed in detention facilities, including unlawful confinement, torture and extrajudicial killings, are an emerging and significant focus for my Office and I call for the support and engagement of all of our partners as we seek to hold to account those responsible for these crimes.
As we seek to deepen our work in this area, our partnerships with national authorities, and, in particular, with the Ukraine Joint Investigative Team established under the auspices of Eurojust, will take on even greater importance. I was pleased to address a meeting of the Joint Investigative Team in Kyiv and I am convinced that the clarity of vision and purpose of this group is going to deliver even greater benefits to our own investigations in the coming months.
Civil society will also be crucial allies in this ongoing work. During my visit, I was delighted to meet with 15 representatives of local CSOs who are undertaking vital, courageous work in the documentation of crimes and the provision of support to survivors and the families of victims. Our conversation underlined progress made in our collaboration but, much more importantly, identified areas where we can more effectively, and collectively, leverage our work together in order to deliver more for affected communities. I am truly grateful for the time they dedicated to our discussion.
This was my sixth visit to Ukraine. I will return again, inshallah. Members of my office continue their work here every day from our permanent office in Kyiv and from headquarters in the Hague. We will not let up our focus; we will increase the intensity of our work; we will deepen our partnerships with all our Ukrainian counterparts until we have truly demonstrated the potential of the law in this moment.
This is both a message of hope and a clear warning. Those who trespass in Ukraine, those who trespass on the rights of its inhabitants, those who believe that they can use untrammeled power to abuse the vulnerable should know that we are united in holding them to account. And this is a message not just for senior leaders, but for any person at any level engaged in these crimes. If you are a foot soldier, if you are guiding a drone to its target, if you are behind a desk planning illegal abductions of individuals, please know that the collective efforts that have been demonstrated in the last days will, eventually, remove any sense of impunity that you presently have.
As my Office further increases its field presence in Ukraine, we will be accelerating our work in pursuance of this imperative.
I wish to express my sincere thanks to the Prosecutor General of Ukraine for his strong support in the organisation of my visit and his ongoing partnership, as well as to all representatives of relevant ministries and agencies who dedicated time to meet with me during this visit despite the exceptionally difficult circumstances currently faced by all in Ukraine.
