UCCRO statement on the initiatives to bring the Russian authorities to justice and restore fairness

STATEMENT

Of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations on the initiatives of the President of Ukraine to bring the Russian authorities to justice and restore fairness

From the very beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations insisted and continues to insist on prosecuting all the inspirers, organizers, and perpetrators of this greatest crime against humanity in the XXI century. Constant artillery, missile, and bomb strikes on the homes of civilians, schools, kindergartens, churches, mosques, and synagogues, the destruction of cities and villages, the deliberate destruction of Ukrainian historical, cultural, and spiritual heritage, the murder of women and children, executions, torture, kidnappings, mockery of international law, nuclear blackmail – all this cannot and should not go unpunished.

Acknowledging the scale of the grief that Russia has inflicted on our believers and the entire Ukrainian people, being aware of the threat that Russian imperialism poses to the peoples of Europe, and based on our religious principles, personal beliefs, and the call of our conscience:

• we unconditionally support the creation of an International Tribunal that would prosecute the Russian authorities for the crime of aggression, that is, for the war started against Ukraine. We favor the speedy establishment and operation of the International Tribunal that leading countries are working on and the punishment of those who started the aggressive war against Ukraine. We appeal to all states, as well as to the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and the U.S. Department of State, to support the creation of a Tribunal based on the International model.
• we strongly condemn the practice of illegal and inhumane forceful deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia and their subsequent forced adoption. We call on the UN, UNICEF, and the Red Cross to pressure Russia with a demand to return the deported Ukrainian children to the country and reunite them with their parents and relatives.
• we welcome the investigation of the International Criminal Court against the Russian authorities and war criminals. A fair trial is one of the fundamental principles necessary for humanity's existence and development.
• we call on the international community to support a compensation mechanism that would facilitate reimbursement of the losses Russia caused to the Ukrainian state and society.