In February, senior legal experts of the European Commission, the European External Action Service, the Council of Europe, Ukraine and 37 States laid down the legal foundations for the establishment of a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. The participants also set out the key elements of the “Schuman draft Statute”, the core legal text that will govern the functioning of the Special Tribunal. The Special Tribunal will be established by an agreement between the Government of Ukraine and the Council of Europe. It will derive its jurisdiction from Ukraine. The Council of Europe will be in charge of the procedure for adoption of the draft legal instruments necessary for the establishment of the Special Tribunal and subsequent signature.
On Friday, the European Commission, the Council of Europe, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, and the representatives of an international coalition of states gathered in Lviv to formally endorse the establishment of a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. About timing for what is happening next, the Council of Europe clarified:
“The formal legal process for establishing the Special Tribunal through the Council of Europe can start only after the President of Ukraine formally invites the Secretary General to start work. This is expected to happen in at the annual session of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers in Luxembourg on 14 May 2025. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Andrii Sybiha, is expected to deliver a letter to the Secretary General inviting him to start the process of establishing the Special Tribunal. The legal work within the Council of Europe could be completed relatively quickly, and certainly before the end of the year. States would then need to approve the legal documents through their domestic proceedings. Financing for the tribunal should also be ensured.”
For the full Lviv statement: https://lnkd.in/entsc8t8.
For more information about these recent developments:
https://lnkd.in/ep-hV_FA
https://lnkd.in/eRHN6F54
https://lnkd.in/eiu5uUv3
(I can also recommend: https://lnkd.in/eJJjYGvQ)
