In a historic legal breakthrough, 36 countries and the European Union formally approved the creation of a Special Tribunal on Friday to prosecute Russian President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
The landmark agreement, struck during a Council of Europe ministerial meeting in Chișinău, Moldova, establishes a binding legal architecture to put Russia’s top political and military masterminds on trial.
It represents the most aggressive collective legal step taken by the international community since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Zelensky: “A Shield for the Future” The diplomatic breakthrough coincided with horrific reminders of the war’s human toll.
Standing amid the rubble of a Kyiv residential high-rise, where the death toll from a recent Russian missile strike rose to 24, including three children, President Volodymyr Zelensky tied the legal victory directly to the bloodshed on the ground.
“Every strike on our cities, every ruined life, and every child killed is a direct consequence of the primary crime – the crime of aggression,” Zelensky said after laying flowers at the scene.
“Today’s agreement brings us closer to the day when those who gave the orders will face a court in The Hague.
Accountability is not an abstract concept; it is a shield for the future,” he added.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who helped spearhead the diplomatic push, echoed the urgency....
