Ukraine’s delegation with ambassador-at-large of the ministry of international affairs Anton Korynevych, third from left, and Russia’s delegation with Gennnady Kuzmin, ambassador-at-large of the ministry of international affairs, bench on the fitting facet, anticipate judges to enter the World Court docket in The Hague, Netherlands, Tuesday, June 6, 2023. 4 days of hearings open in a case introduced by Ukraine towards Russia on the UN’s high court docket alleging that Russia breached treaties on terrorist financing and racial discrimination in jap Ukraine and Crimea. (AP Picture/Peter Dejong)
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A high Ukrainian diplomat referred to as Russia a “terrorist state” Tuesday as he opened his nation’s case towards Moscow on the United Nations’ highest court docket and accused Russia of blowing up a significant dam in southern Ukraine.
Anton Korynevych was addressing judges on the Worldwide Court docket of Justice in a case introduced by Kyiv towards Russia linked to Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and arming of rebels in jap Ukraine within the years earlier than Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Ukraine desires the world court docket to order Moscow to pay reparations for assaults within the areas, together with for the downing of Malaysia Airways flight MH17 that was shot down by Russia-backed rebels on July 17, 2014, killing all 298 passengers and crew.
Korynevych stated that with Moscow unable to beat Ukraine on the battlefield, “it targets civilian infrastructure to attempt to freeze us into submission. Earlier at present, simply at present, … Russia blew up a significant dam situated in Nova Kakhovka, inflicting vital civilians evacuations, harsh ecological damages and threatening the protection of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear energy plant. Russia’s actions are the actions of a terrorist state, an aggressor.”
4 days of hearings within the court docket’s ornate, wood-paneled Nice Corridor of Justice are opening towards a backdrop of Europe’s deadliest battle since World Conflict II. Ukraine and Russia are buying and selling accusations of blame for the injury to the Kakhovka dam and hydroelectric energy station, that are situated in part of Ukraine that Moscow controls.
In the meantime, in The Hague, legal professionals for Kyiv have been presenting authorized arguments to help their case Tuesday, adopted by Russia on Thursday. Either side has one other alternative subsequent week to current proof. Judges are anticipated to take months to concern a judgment.
“The Russian Federation has contempt for worldwide regulation,” Korynevych stated. “During the last 16 months, the world has woken as much as this darkish actuality.”
The case is one among a number of authorized proceedings towards Russia linked to Ukraine.
In a separate case introduced by Ukraine within the instant aftermath of Russia’s unlawful invasion, the world court docket issued a preliminary order calling on Russia to cease hostilities — a legally binding ruling that Moscow ignored.
In that case, Kyiv is arguing that Russia violated the 1948 Genocide Conference by falsely accusing Ukraine of committing genocide and utilizing that as a pretext for the Feb. 24, 2022, invasion. Moscow argues that the court docket doesn’t have jurisdiction.
A number of kilometers (miles) away on the Worldwide Felony Court docket, judges have issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on expenses of deporting and illegally transferring youngsters from Ukraine. Russia shouldn’t be a member of the court docket and doesn’t acknowledge its jurisdiction.
In the meantime, a Dutch home court docket final yr convicted two Russians and a pro-Moscow Ukrainian for his or her roles in downing MH17 and sentenced them of their absence to life imprisonment. Ukraine additionally has one other case towards Russia on the Worldwide Court docket of Justice over its invasion final yr, and the Netherlands and Ukraine are suing Moscow on the European Court docket of Human Rights over MH17.
Russia has at all times denied involvement within the downing of the passenger jet that was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down by a Soviet-era missile over jap Ukraine.
Tuesday’s listening to is in a case Kyiv introduced in 2017 associated to Russia arming rebels in jap Ukraine and proscribing the rights of ethnic Tatars and different minorities following its annexation of Crimea in 2014.
In a preliminary ruling, the court docket ordered Russia to cease limiting “the power of the Crimean Tatar group to preserve its consultant establishments.”
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Comply with AP’s protection of the warfare in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
