内容摘要：According to Ukrainian officials, the version of the deal signed Wednesday is far more beneficial to Ukraine than

According to Ukrainian officials, the version of the deal signed Wednesday is far more beneficial to Ukraine than

Because Russia is not a member of the International Criminal Court, it cannot prosecute Russian President Vladimir Putin and other senior leaders for starting the conflict. Ukrainian and European leaders came up with the special tribunal as an alternative way to hold Russian leaders to account.The court will be formed following a joint agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe, the continent’s top human rights organization.

Since early in the conflict, Kyiv has been pushing for the creation of a special tribunal that goes beyond prosecuting war crimes that Ukraine alleged Russian forces committed — including bombing civilian infrastructure, killing civilians, rape, taking hostages and torture. Russia denies those claims.“If we want true justice, we should not look for excuses and should not refer to the shortcomings of the current international law but make bold decisions that will correct those shortcomings that unfortunately exist in international law,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a visit to the Netherlands in 2023.Similar special tribunals were established after World War II, the Balkan wars sparked by the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia and the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

The institution will be funded by the countries who back it, known as the Core Group, including the Netherlands, Japan and Canada. The United States had backed the project under former President Joe Biden, but President Donald Trump’s administration did not support the initiative.On Friday, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said in a joint statement with foreign ministers from some 40 countries that technical legal work necessary to establish the tribunal is complete. It added that the court will be formalized at a Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in Luxembourg later this month.

The statement was agreed in the presence of EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas in Lviv, in western Ukraine.

Once established the tribunal will focus on prosecuting Russian leaders most responsible for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine that began in 2022.People comfort each other following an officer involved shooting that left two dead and three injured at the Las Vegas Athletic Club in Las Vegas Friday, May 16, 2025. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)

Las Vegas Metro Police officers confer by the main entrance of a Las Vegas Athletic Club after a shooting Friday, May 16, 2025, in Las Vegas. (Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP)Las Vegas Metro Police officers confer by the main entrance of a Las Vegas Athletic Club after a shooting Friday, May 16, 2025, in Las Vegas. (Steve Marcus/Las Vegas Sun via AP)

A bystander walks on Rainbow Boulevard as Las Vegas police investigate an officer involved shooting that left two dead and three injured at the Las Vegas Athletic Club in Las Vegas Friday, May 16, 2025. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)A bystander walks on Rainbow Boulevard as Las Vegas police investigate an officer involved shooting that left two dead and three injured at the Las Vegas Athletic Club in Las Vegas Friday, May 16, 2025. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)