Iceland and Poland have supported the establishment of a special tribunal against Russia
Iceland and Poland have confirmed their readiness to join the international agreement necessary for the establishment of a Special Tribunal on Russia’s crime of aggression against Ukraine. As a result, the number of signatory states has reached the required legal minimum.
This was announced by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga on X.
“We are grateful to our Icelandic and Polish partners for this important step. This marks a turning point: with 17 confirmations, we have officially surpassed the legal minimum number of member states required to vote on the agreement,” he noted.
According to the foreign minister, this concerns an Enhanced Partial Agreement (EPA) regarding the Steering Committee of the Special Tribunal. The document may be submitted for consideration during the meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, which will take place on May 14–15 in Chisinau.
Sibiga emphasized that preparations for the tribunal’s launch are progressing rapidly.
“Less than a year has passed since we gave the green light to the Tribunal on May 9, 2025, when we gathered the foreign ministers of European countries in Lviv. And now we have prepared all the legal steps for the Tribunal to begin its work,” he said.
The minister also stressed that Ukraine will continue to engage new countries in signing the agreement—both among Council of Europe members and beyond.
“We call on all states to join these historic efforts toward accountability. The criminals in Moscow must realize that justice is inevitable—from ordinary Russian perpetrators to the highest military and political leadership. Accountability is crucial for a lasting peace,” added the head of Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Earlier, Latvia announced its intention to join the agreement on establishing a special tribunal for Russia for the crime of aggression against Ukraine. Riga stated that it supports the initiative to create an international mechanism to hold Russia accountable for its aggression against Ukraine.
Prior to this, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga reported significant progress on the issue of establishing a Special Tribunal to investigate Russia’s crime of aggression against Ukraine.
