内容摘要：A passenger walks by a train on a scheduled stop Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in The Pas, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

A passenger walks by a train on a scheduled stop Friday, Aug. 9, 2024, in The Pas, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

“The crime of aggression is sometimes referred to as the ‘mother of all other crimes’ because it precedes all of the other crimes, war crimes, crimes against humanity, even genocide,” Iva Vukusic, an international law expert at the University of Utrecht, told The Associated Press.“You don’t prosecute foot soldiers for aggression,” she added. The tribunal plans to pursue cases against around 20 to 30 high-ranking officials.

A dozen Nazi leaders including Hermann Göring and Rudolf Hess were convicted of what was then called “a crime against peace” during the Nuremberg trials following WWII. That was the last time anyone has been convicted of aggression.International law grants the so-called troika — consisting of a country’s head of state, head of government and foreign affairs minister — immunity from prosecution while they are in office.However, the tribunal could initiate proceedings against Putin and wait until he leaves office to move forward with a trial. There is no statute of limitation on the crime of aggression.

The court will have the power to hold trials in absentia, though anyone convicted without being in the custody of the tribunal would have the right to a retrial.The move to create a special tribunal aims to fill a void created by limitations on the ICC. While The Hague-based court can go after Russian nationals for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, it cannot prosecute Russians for orchestrating the invasion itself.

The 2002 Rome Statute which created the court was amended in 2010 to include the crime of aggression — but only for countries that have joined the court. The Russian Federation is not a member state.

for Putin for war crimes, accusing him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine, as well as five other officials.A polar bear sculpture greets patrons, Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2024, at the Churchill Public Library in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Street signs featuring a polar bear and Indigenous tipis stand on a street corner, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)Street signs featuring a polar bear and Indigenous tipis stand on a street corner, Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

Water reflects a mural featuring polar bears and beluga whales, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)Water reflects a mural featuring polar bears and beluga whales, Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, in Churchill, Manitoba. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)