The need to bring to justice those responsible for crimes committed during Russia's war against Ukraine and recognise the importance of the process of establishing a Special Tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine within the Council of Europe will be emphasised during the conclusions of the European Council, which will be held in Brussels on 20-21 March.

Source: draft text of the conclusions, available to European Pravda

Details: It is expected that EU leaders will call the establishment of a special tribunal under the auspices of the Council of Europe, which aims to punish those responsible for the crimes of Russia during Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, primarily Russian leader Vladimir Putin and the top leadership of the Russian Federation, an important step.

It is worth noting that Hungary will not support part of the conclusions on Ukraine. It is expected to be approved by 26 out of 27 EU states.

"The European Council reaffirms the EU's strong commitment to ensuring full accountability for war crimes and other most serious crimes committed in connection with Russia's aggression against Ukraine. In this context, the progress made in establishing the special tribunal for the crimes of aggression against Ukraine within the Council of Europe is an important step," the document reads. 

Background: 

• On 7 March, EU ministers, among other things, discussed the creation of a tribunal to punish the crime of Russian aggression against Ukraine, which aims to bring Russian leader Vladimir Putin to justice.
• Discussions on creating a special tribunal for Russia for the crime of aggression have been ongoing since 2022, as there is still no international court that would prosecute the crime of aggression. However, there has been no practical progress on this issue for a long time.
• On 4 February 2025, during the 13th meeting of the Core Group on the establishment of a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, a draft statute of the tribunal was approved, and an agreement was reached to launch it based on a bilateral agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe.
• The media reported in late February that US representatives refused to name Russia as the aggressor at a meeting of the Core Group.

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