A broad coalition of democratic nations has endorsed the formation of a special tribunal to prosecute the crime of aggression against Ukraine, a powerful symbolic gesture marking Europe Day that is set to face formidable challenges to fulfill its mission.
The political approval, which consolidates more than two years of behind-the-scenes work between legal advisors, was sealed on Friday afternoon during a visit by foreign affairs ministers to Lviv, the largest city in western Ukraine.
The occasion gathered envoys from almost 40 European and non-European nations, together with representatives from the EU institutions and the Council of Europe. Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, and foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, took part.
The most glaring absence was the United States, which was closely involved in the discussions during the Biden administration but changed direction under Donald Trump.
“Every inch of Russia’s war has been documented. It leaves no room for doubt in Russia’s manifest violation of the UN Charter. It leaves no room for impunity. Russia’s aggression will not go unpunished,” said High Representative Kaja Kallas.
David Lammy, the British Foreign Secretary, said: “It is absolutely clear that when this war is over, those who have perpetrated in Russia must account for their crimes of aggression and their crimes against humanity.”
The statute agreed by the coalition foresees a tribunal built from the ground up with the task of investigating and prosecuting one specific offence: the crime of aggression, defined as the preparation and execution of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, which apply to individuals who commit the atrocities, the crime of aggression is a leadership crime that probes the people who are ultimately in charge of controlling the aggressor state.
In practice, this will cover the so-called troika – the president, the prime minister and the foreign minister – together with high-ranking military commanders who have overseen the assault on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Vladimir Putin, the mastermind behind the invasion and the prime promoter of its revisionist narrative, immediately becomes the most wanted target.
The tribunal will have the power to impose strong penalties on those found guilty, including life imprisonment “when justified for extreme gravity”, confiscation of personal properties and monetary fines, an EU official explained.
Proceeds arising from any confiscations and fines would be transferred to a new compensation fund for Ukrainian victims, an innovative element that helps create a link “between criminal activity and right of reparation”, the official noted.
Following Friday’s endorsement, the legal texts will undergo a formal vote at the Council of Europe, a human rights organisation based in Strasbourg that will provide the institutional framework for the new legal entity.
Formal work is scheduled to start sometime in 2026.
“This is more than a diplomatic milestone; it is a solemn promise to the victims, to history, and to future generations — that justice will be done, and that sustainable peace will be built on truth, accountability, and the rule of law,” said Michael McGrath, the European Commissioner for Justice, who also travelled to Lviv for the occasion.
Legal constraints
The special tribunal will face significant obstacles before it achieves results, however.
Prosecutors will be allowed to carry out trials in absentia, that is, without the physical presence of the defendant in the room, who will be represented by legal counsel instead.
But crucially, the troika will remain immune so long as they remain in office, as Euronews previously reported. Having re-designed the Russian state according to his own vision, Putin is unlikely to depart from the Kremlin any time soon.
The prosecutor could still file an indictment against President Putin, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Foreign Minister Mikhail Mishustin for the crime of aggression, but the chamber will keep the proceedings suspended until any of the accused resigns.
“Once they leave office, a full trial will be possible,” another EU official explained, speaking on condition of anonymity. “There is no impunity. The immunity is a temporary suspension of the trial as long as the person is in office. No more, no less.”
Trial in absentia might be conducted for those outside the troika who fall under the scope of the crime of aggression, such as military and marine commanders. Those who are sentenced in this manner will have the right to a re-trial if they ever appear in person.
Between 20 and 30 Russian officials are estimated to be potential indictees.
Likely targets include Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the general staff of the Russian Armed Forces; Sergey Kobylash, the commander of the Russian Air Force; and Sergei Shoigu, the former minister of defence and current secretary of the Security Council; all of whom are subject to arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The special tribunal is intended to fill the gap left by the ICC, which has competence to prosecute the crime of aggression, but only when the offence is committed by a state party. Russia is not a signatory to the Rome Statute. Additionally, Russia can use its veto at the UN Security Council to block any international litigation.
Like the ICC, the new court is expected to be based in the Hague after the Dutch government expressed interest in hosting the body, which will be maintained with funds paid by all participating countries, the EU and the Council of Europe. The appointment of prosecutors and judges will be done through an independent panel of experts.
America’s no-show
While the democratic coalition hailed Friday’s event as a breakthrough in a years-long search for accountability, the no-show of the United States exposed the deepening gap between Washington and its traditional Western allies.
Since his return to the White House, Donald Trump has promoted a fast-moving diplomatic rapprochement with Putin, going as far as publicly repeating the Kremlin’s talking points. In one infamous moment, Trump attacked Zelenskyy as a “dictator against elections” and shifted the blame for the war to Ukraine, the country under invasion.
The approach has also played out in the UN, where the US has sided with Russia to oppose several critical resolutions. One of these resolutions highlighted the Council of Europe’s contribution to establishing the special tribunal on the crime of aggression.
“Suspending US participation in the process of establishing the tribunal is one of about a dozen important concessions that the new US administration has made to Putin,” Radosław Sikorski, Poland’s foreign minister, said the day before the trip to Lviv.
“I failed to see a single concession on the part of Putin, and I hope President Trump, being so well known as a negotiator, will draw the right conclusion.”
In Brussels, officials still hope the White House will eventually change its mind and join the initiative, which will remain open for any country that wishes to participate. Trump’s relationship with Zelenskyy appears to have improved since an impromptu meeting in the Vatican last month and the signing of a much-anticipated minerals deal.
“My expectation is that the US will join eventually because they have a very good record of cooperation with the Council of Europe,” the EU official said.
“I have some reason to believe the US will be helpful in this process.”
The last time the crime of aggression was brought to justice was during the Nuremberg trials held after World War II, when the charge was known as “crimes against peace”.
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