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Britain will convene a meeting of justice ministers in March to discuss how to support an International Criminal Court investigation into alleged war crimes in Ukraine, the British government said on Saturday.
The International Criminal Court in The Hague is currently investigating Ukraine for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
London said ICC prosecutor Karim Khan would attend a March meeting with ministers from around the world.
In December, Khan urged the international community to support and fund the ICC investigation, saying: “We need the tools to do the job. We don’t have the tools.”
The UK government said the meeting was “aimed at increasing global financial and practical support to the ICC and coordinating efforts to ensure it has everything it needs to investigate and prosecute those responsible”.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, who will co-chair the meeting, said participants would discuss how they could help gather information and share evidence of the atrocities, as well as support victims.
“The Russian military should know that they cannot go unpunished, and we will support Ukraine until justice is done,” Raab said.
He stressed that “the international community must give the ICC its strongest support so that war criminals can be held accountable for the atrocities we have witnessed”.
Conference co-host, Dutch Justice Minister Dylan Yesilgouz-Zeglius, said participants would “coordinate with our partners to ensure support to the ICC and Ukrainian authorities”.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in December that Moscow would immediately veto the resolution without a U.N. Security Council resolution that would allow the ICC to try non-member Russia for “leading” aggression.
Instead, she proposed setting up a UN-backed special court to prosecute Russian leaders for the “crime of aggression” over the invasion of Ukraine.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said last month that Russia’s massive missile attack on Ukraine, targeting civilian infrastructure, “constitutes a war crime and is barbaric. All those responsible should be held accountable.”
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