PACE recognizes Putin’s arrest warrant and calls deportation of children to Russia genocide
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has officially recognized the arrest warrant for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
This was reported by deputy Oleksiy Honcharenko on Telegram.
In addition, the PACE adopted a resolution on the forced deportation of Ukrainian children and adults to Russia. It is the first time that the term genocide has been used in an official document of this level.
The resolution was supported by 87 votes.
Photo: Facebook/Eugenia Kravchuk
The resolution states that Russia must immediately and unconditionally cease the illegal forced displacement and deportation of Ukrainian children, stop granting them Russian citizenship, and allow UN and ICRC representatives to visit the already displaced children and ensure their safe return.
The PACE also called on the International Criminal Court to consider prosecuting this crime.
One of the members of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE, Yevhenia Kravchuk, clarified on Facebook that the resolution:
- Emphasizes that the facts of deportation and forced displacement of Ukrainian children to the Russian Federation fall under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 1948;
- Welcomes the decision of the ICC to issue arrest warrants for dictator Vladimir Putin and Russian children’s ombudsman Maria Lvova-Belova;
- Supports the need to document, collect and evaluate evidence of the crime of genocide;
- Calls on the ICC to consider prosecuting those responsible for the crime of genocide;
- Calls on the participating states to consider prosecuting all crimes in national courts;
- Сalls for immediate measures to stop the deportation of Ukrainian children.
In the issue of Putin’s arrest warrant, the document expands the range of countries where the dictator is considered an official war crimes suspect.
According to Mr. Honcharenko, this is one of the most important decisions of the PACE in this resolution. He explained that not all PACE members are countries that have ratified the Rome Statute. But the adoption of this resolution expands the range of countries where Putin will be considered a suspect at the official level.
