International Special Tribunal: Ukraine

Stephen Gethins Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd September 2024 Westminster Hall

[Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Honiton and Sidmouth (Richard Foord) for securing this important debate. The fact that it is the second time in a year that he has brought the issue to the House, and his first Westminster Hall debate in this Parliament, shows his and the Liberal Democrats’ commitment to Ukraine, which is unwavering, as is that of the entire House.

Like Members from all parties, I have been appalled by the violence and devastation that we have witnessed on our doorstep since Putin’s illegal invasion. Homes, schools and hospitals have been destroyed by Putin’s bombs. Communities have been turned into war zones. Although the conflict has faded from the headlines somewhat, the war wages on. Just one week ago, Ukraine was subject to an enormous air attack, with Russia launching 127 missiles and 109 attack drones overnight and into Monday morning. At least seven people were killed and dozens were wounded. The attack appeared to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Ukrainian MP Kira Rudik, a member of our sister party Holos, raised concerns that Russia

“keeps bringing us closer and closer to that total blackout.”

She says that homes in Kyiv do not have electricity for the majority of the day and people are really worried about how they will get through the winter.

It is clear that Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine are dangerous and destabilising. Its war is illegal and it continues to press forward with egregious breaches of international law, so I am pleased that my hon. Friend the Member for Honiton and Sidmouth has raised the potential for a special tribunal on the crime of aggression. Human rights and the rule of law are at the core of Liberal Democrat values. Where there are breaches of international law, it is right that those responsible are held to account without fear or favour.

A crime of aggression consists of

“the planning, preparation, initiation or execution, by a person in a position effectively to exercise control over or to direct the political or military action of a State, of an act of aggression”.

In the case of Russia’s actions in Ukraine, there is clearly a case to answer. The Liberal Democrats wholeheartedly back our international institutions like the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. Their processes and judgments should be supported.

[Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)]

I thank the hon. Lady for taking my intervention and pay tribute to the hon. Member for Honiton and Sidmouth (Richard Foord) for securing this important debate. Does the hon. Lady agree that the international rules-based system has a crucial role to play and that, today of all days, the appalling attack on Poltava underlines the need for a tribunal?

[Layla Moran]

There is nothing in what the hon. Gentleman said to disagree with. The world is a tumultuous place and it has never been more important to have a strong international rules-based order. Right now, it feels very rickety. A special tribunal is another way in which we can show that the international community can act in concert to bring perpetrators of injustices to account.

As my hon. Friend the Member for Honiton and Sidmouth said so clearly, the courts are restricted in the case of the crime of aggression in Ukraine. As neither Ukraine nor the Russian Federation is party to the Rome statute, the court cannot exercise jurisdiction in the case of the crime of aggression. Given Russia’s membership of the Security Council, it would veto any efforts of that council to refer it to the court.

A special crimes tribunal would allow those responsible to be held accountable for their crimes and not escape international justice through legal loopholes. The fact that Ukraine supports a special tribunal should be reason enough to pursue one. President Zelensky said:

“If we want true justice, we should not look for excuses and should not refer to the shortcomings of the current international law, but make bold decisions that will correct the shortcomings of those norms”.

The Liberal Democrats were pleased to see the previous Government join the core group dedicated to achieving accountability for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine back in 2023, but there has been slow progress since then. Perhaps most concerningly, a lead King’s counsel suggested earlier this year that politicking within the ICC itself was halting the process. Philippe Sands KC, a leading advocate of an international tribunal, said it was

“so sad the institution that seems most opposed to this idea is the ICC in the form of its prosecutor and some of its judges. This is not an issue of principle for them, but an issue of turf.”

I sincerely hope that he is wrong in that assessment and that they will not stand in the way—nor, indeed, should anyone else. I am interested to hear what the new Minister has to say about the Government’s position and exactly what steps they are taking at a diplomatic level to advance the progress of a special tribunal.

Putin underestimates the brave resistance of Ukrainians and their commitment to their democracy, their liberty and their country. As Putin redoubles his efforts to attack Ukraine, so too must we redouble ours to stand in their defence. The spectre of a second Trump presidency has Putin rubbing his hands together. We only have one option: to stand with our Ukrainian allies as they seek to bravely resist Russia’s illegal invasion. That means working with international partners to establish a special tribunal to make sure that Putin is held to account for his crimes. As the new Government look to re-establish Britain’s place on the world stage, this is a golden opportunity to show the rest of the world that when we stand up for international law, we mean it.