The ICC’s top war crimes prosecutor has traveled to Ukraine to investigate, and the US embassy in Kyiv argued at the start of the war that the specific Russian attacks constituted a war crime.
But Khan said there is a burden of proof and there is a process that must be followed.
Here’s a very comprehensive look at war crimes and the international justice movement.
What is war crime?
In particular, targeting the civilian population, violating the Geneva Conventions, targeting specific groups of people and more could be potential Russian war crimes.
Khan said attacks in civilian areas can be justified if they are being used to launch attacks. But even then, he said, attacks in civilian areas cannot be disproportionate.
Evidence is a method of gathering evidence from satellite images and elsewhere to meet the burden of evidence.
What is the International Criminal Court?
Most countries on Earth – 123 of them – are parties to the treaty, but there are very large and notable exceptions, including Russia and the US. And, for that matter, Ukraine.
Who can be prosecuted by the court?
A person accused of an offense may be prosecuted within the jurisdiction of a court of law, including countries that are members of the ICC. The court tries people, not countries, and focuses on those who hold the most responsibility: leaders and officials. While Ukraine is not a member of the court, it has previously acknowledged its jurisdiction.
So, theoretically, Putin could be accused of ordering war crimes in Crimea.
What offenses does the court handle?
The ICC is supposed to be a court of “last resort” and is not meant to replace the justice system of a country. The court, which has 18 judges serving nine years in prison, tries four types of crimes: genocide, crimes against humanity, crimes of aggression, and war crimes.
How does the ICC bring proceedings?
Court proceedings may be brought in one of two ways: either a national government or the United Nations Security Council may refer cases for investigation.
Russia, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, has veto power over the council’s actions. This was requested by 39 national governments, most of whom were European, which led to this current investigation.
Khan previously told CNN, “I want to emphasize that I am ready to talk to all sides, not only the Ukrainian side, but also the Russian Federation, state parties and non-state parties. This institution is political. No. We are not part of the ‘geo-strategic or geopolitical divide’ that we see around the world.
What will the ICC investigate regarding Ukraine?
In its new investigation into Russia’s possible war crimes, the ICC has said it will look into all actions in Ukraine from 2013 to the present.
How long do these tests take?
If justice normally moves slowly, international justice hardly moves forward. Investigations in the ICC take many years. Only a handful of convictions have been won.
Khan told Cooper that this notion of slow and ineffective justice would test the system of international law.
“It is a test for the court. This is a test for me, it is a test for the office,” he said.
What are cluster bombs and vacuum bombs?
In addition to attacks on hospitals and civilian apartment buildings, the use of prohibited weapons to kill without discrimination is another very specific war crime.
“Vacuum bombs,” or thermobaric weapons, suck oxygen from the surrounding air to produce a powerful explosion and a large pressure wave that can have extremely devastating effects. Russia had previously used them in Chechnya.
‘It’s a massacre’
Asked during an appearance on CBS on Sunday whether Russia was committing genocide in his country based on images from outside Bucha, Zelensky said: “Actually. It’s genocide.”
The alleged atrocities in Buka have drawn outrage from leaders outside Ukraine, with Western leaders including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for an investigation into war crimes and increased sanctions on Russia.
“Since the aggression, we have come out and said that we believe that the Russian military has committed war crimes, and we are working to document it to provide relevant institutions and organizations with the information that all this together. And it needs accountability,” he told CNN.
CNN has not been able to independently confirm details about the deaths.
Why would the Ukraine prosecution be different?
According to Ryan Goodman, a professor of law at New York University and co-editor-in-chief of Just Security, an online forum, the international outcry against Russia is unique, and it could give the court the potential to act differently.
“It is difficult to judge an ICC investigation based on past practice,” Goodman said in an email after the court initially launched its investigation. “In the situation in Ukraine, the prosecutor is bolstered by the extraordinary support of dozens of countries, which I hope will lead to a mobilization of resources.”
How will the ICC case affect the conflict?
“For better or worse, the ICC investigation could affect the diplomatic space for talks,” Goodman said, adding that Putin and other Russians do not want to risk arrest if they travel outside the country.
He argued that the investigation could undermine Putin even at home.
“Russia may realize that this is one more reason Putin can no longer serve his country,” Goodman said.
What happened before ICC?
It all stems from the precedent of the Nuremberg Trials to bring justice to the Nazis after World War II and conducted by the Allies, including the US, the Soviet Union, France and Germany.
So it is interesting that neither the US nor Russia are members of the ICC.
Why are the US and Russia not members of the ICC?
The US and Russia are both signatories to the treaty that created the court – meaning their leaders signed it – but neither is a member of the court.
At that time France also accused Russia of committing war crimes in Syria.
As far as the US is concerned, while President Bill Clinton signed the court-making treaty in 2000, he never recommended the Senate ratify it.
“The President (George W. Bush) thinks the ICC is fundamentally flawed because it puts American soldiers and women at fundamental risk of being prosecuted by an institution that is beyond America’s reach, beyond US laws and American citizens and the military can arbitrarily subordinate the standards of justice,” said Ari Fleischer, White House press secretary at the time.
How has America supported the court?
Opposing the US joining the court did not mean that the Bush administration itself opposed the court. It supported ICC efforts to seek justice for the genocide in Sudan.
This story and its title have been updated with additional development.