“The Russian Federation must, meanwhile [une enquête approfondie] suspend the military operations started on February 24, 2022 on Ukrainian territory”. The International Court of Justice, the highest jurisdiction of the United Nations, ordered Russia to halt the invasion of Ukraine, deeming itself fit to continue the proceedings initiated against Moscow.
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“Ukraine has won a complete victory in its case against Russia before the International Court of Justicewelcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The ICJ ordered an immediate halt to the invasion. The order is binding under international law. Russia must comply immediately. Ignoring the order will further isolate Russia. »
“Russia must be stopped”
This verdict follows an urgent request made by Ukraine a few days after the Russian army crossed the Ukrainian borders. kyiv believes that the allegations of genocide against the Russian-speaking populations of Ukraine and self-defense provided by Moscow to invade the country are false.
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The Ukrainian authorities had thus demanded interim measures ordering Russia to “immediately suspend military operations”. “Russia must be stopped, and the court has a role to play in stopping that”declared during a hearing the representative of Ukraine, Anton Korynevych.
Judgments hard to enforce
Created in 1946, the ICJ’s mission is to settle disputes between States by basing its conclusions on international treaties and conventions. However, it is unlikely that the Court’s decision will be implemented. Indeed, if its judgments are binding on paper, the ICJ has no means of ensuring that they are implemented.
Moreover, Russia denies the jurisdiction of the UN tribunal over this dispute, saying that kyiv’s request does not fall within the scope of the 1948 Genocide Convention, on which kyiv bases its case. “The Government of the Russian Federation respectfully requests the Court to refrain from indicating provisional measures and to withdraw the case from its docket”, claimed Russia ahead of the verdict. Russian representatives refused to appear at the various ICJ hearings, citing a lack of time to prepare.
The Court will now examine the merits of the conflict between the two countries, a procedure which could take several years.
At the same time, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is investigating war crimes in Ukraine. Its Attorney General Karim Khan visited the country on Wednesday March 16, where many civilians died in the strikes carried out by the Russian army.