The UN International Court of Justice, based in The Hague, began hearings this Monday on the genocide lawsuit filed by Ukraine against Russia. According to Court documents, these sessions will take place between September 18 and 27 and will focus on preliminary objections presented by Moscow.
Ukraine’s case against Russia began on February 26, 2022, two days after the Kremlin entered the neighboring country with its tanks and soldiers. Kyiv argued that the Russian intervention was based on false accusations of acts of genocide in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions of eastern Ukraine, and alleged that Moscow was planning acts of genocide in Ukraine.
The actions against Moscow are based on the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which both countries have ratified.
Kyiv wants the Court to order Russia to stop the invasion and pay reparations. In bringing the case, Ukraine said that “Russia has reversed the Genocide Convention, making a false claim of genocide as the basis for actions on its part that constitute serious violations of the human rights of millions of people throughout Ukraine.”
Then Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the demand as “perverse logic” and accused Western countries of abusing the norms of international justice.
In a provisional ruling in March 2022, the Court ordered Russia to stop hostilities in Ukraine. But Moscow ignored him and continued with its maneuvers within what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation” and which has now lasted more than 18 months.
On October 3, 2022, Russia submitted preliminary objections to the Court’s jurisdiction and the fact that it had admitted the claim. As a consequence, the procedure on the merits was suspended.
Moscow has argued before the Court’s judges that Ukraine is using the case as an indirect way to obtain a ruling on the overall legality of its military actions.
Russian officials continue to accuse Ukraine of committing genocide in the Donbass region in the east of the country, where Kyiv troops have been fighting pro-Russian forces since 2014. This Monday they repeated accusations that “the Russophobic and neo-Russian regime -Kyiv Nazi” uses the Genocide Convention as a pretext to take Moscow to court.
In June this year, the UN International Court of Justice authorized 32 states to join Ukraine’s lawsuit against Russia.
After Moscow, which took the floor this Monday; and Kyiv, which does so on Tuesday, on Wednesday, September 20, Western countries allied with Ukraine will be heard. These include Canada and Australia, as well as all members of the European Union, except Hungary.
The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed its position against the inclusion of all of them in the case, since the admitted countries have a position in favor of Ukraine and try to pressure the Court. “The Russian side is disappointed by the decision of the Court, made despite the evidence presented about the contradiction of this practice with the rules of the Court and the general principles of justice. This decision of the Court will be used against the International Court of Justice. justice and all international justice,” he said in a statement.
The Court, however, did accept Moscow’s opposition to the United States accessing the case materials and joining the lawsuit.
The 15 judges of the UN International Court of Justice, the only international court that adjudicates disputes between countries, will take weeks or months to reach a decision on whether this case can go forward. If the decision is to proceed, it will likely take several years to reach a final verdict.
Although Russia has so far ignored the order to stop its military actions in Ukraine, a ruling in Ukraine’s favor could be important for future requests for reparations.
