The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine welcomes the adoption by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) of two important resolutions: “Legal aspects and human rights issues in the context of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine” and “Support for political negotiations to ensure the exchange and release of prisoners of war.”

These documents are yet another powerful testimony of PACE’s uncompromising support for the fundamental principles of international law, the protection of human rights, the fight against impunity, and solidarity with the people of Ukraine in the struggle against Russian aggression.

The resolution on the legal aspects of the Russian Federation’s aggression is an important step towards ensuring accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. We welcome the Assembly’s clear legal conclusions, in particular:

• the recognition of the actions of Russia, Belarus, and the DPRK as an act of aggression;
• the establishment of individual responsibility of the political and military leadership of these states;
• the confirmation of the fact of the illegal occupation of Crimea and other Ukrainian territories as a gross violation of international law;
• the recognition of deportations, torture, repressions, and enforced disappearances as war crimes, crimes against humanity, and in some cases — as manifestations of genocide.

Of particular importance is PACE’s resolute support for the creation of a Special Tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine within the Council of Europe, as well as the call on all member states to join the corresponding Enlarged Partial Agreement.

Ukraine also highly appreciates the Assembly’s attention to the issue of reparations, in particular the creation of a full-fledged international compensation mechanism and the appropriate role of the Register of Damage for Ukraine.

The PACE resolution on political support for the exchange of prisoners of war, initiated by the Ukrainian delegation, became the Assembly’s first comprehensive document that records the mass and systematic violations by the Russian Federation of the Third Geneva Convention.

The document testifies to Russia’s guilt for torture, executions, sexual violence, denial of access for the ICRC, and the persecution of Ukrainian military personnel for participating in combat.

The Assembly emphasizes the need to establish a permanent mechanism for the exchange of prisoners of war with the involvement of neutral mediators and international organizations.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs calls on the member states of the Council of Europe, observer states, and international partners to actively contribute to the implementation of the provisions of the resolutions, to support the creation of the Special Tribunal, to join the compensation mechanism, to intensify sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation, and to provide practical support for Ukraine’s efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice and to release all prisoners.

We are grateful to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for its consistent leadership in the fight for human rights, democracy, the rule of law, and justice in Europe