International Conference on Criminal Law in Berlin – Ministry of Justice

The main topic was the issue of prosecuting crimes in the light of international law, with particular emphasis on war crimes committed in the context of the Russian aggression against Ukraine.

“The Russian aggression cannot remain unanswered by the international community,” Minister of Justice Adam Bodnar told the audience. “Poland fully supports the investigation launched by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in order to bring justice for the crimes that have been and continue to be committed on the territory of Ukraine – in particular war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

As Adam Bodnar emphasized, the Polish Ministry of Justice and law enforcement agencies have taken steps to prevent the impunity of the perpetrators of these crimes and to document them. As part of these activities, the Polish prosecutor’s office has initiated criminal proceedings on the aggression directed against the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of Ukraine. Poland actively participates in the joint investigation team established with Ukraine and Lithuania, which has also been joined by other countries and the ICC Prosecutor. The team’s main goal is to coordinate collecting and securing of evidence of crimes in order to bring the perpetrators to criminal justice.

The Minister appealed for further support for Kiev in the fight against Russian aggression – both on political and military level. “We must be united,” he stressed.

The conference was also attended by, among others, representatives of the US Department of Justice – Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, Christian A. Levesque – Director of the War Crimes Accountability Team, as well as Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin and Jarosław Malinowski – representing the International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA).

The participants of the conference also discussed the achievements and challenges related to the investigation of war crimes under international law. The system of support for the victims of these crimes was also discussed.

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Ministry od Justice