International crimes in the conditions of war in Ukraine: problems of justice and criminal justice

Abstract

Introduction. Ukraine's victory in the on going war against Russia depends, among other things, on the mobilization of the entire domestic criminal justice system for effective investigation and prosecution of those guilty of crimes against the Ukrainian people. Russia's aggression in Europe did not begin in 2022 with a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and not even in 2014 with the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the occupation of part of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, but in 2008,when military operations were launched in Georgia. Unfortunately, neither in 2008 nor in 2014 did the international security system and the world react properly and mobilize efforts to prevent a full-scale war in the heart of Europe, a war with signs of genocide, terrorism and barbarism, the death of thousands of civilians, the destruction of critical infrastructure European state. The aim of the article is to determine the state of response to Russia's armed aggression by national and international legal means. Conclusions. Mechanisms for the administration of justice in connection with the commission of crimes currently exist at the national and international levels. The latter, in turn, has two directions: one of them is at the stage of collecting materials, recording and investigating war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; the second – in its infancy – at the stage of finding a concept and its further implementation regarding the creation of an international tribunal on the crime of aggression. It is necessary to find mechanisms to bring the representatives of the aggressor state and accomplice states (the Republic of Belarus, Iran) to justice. Since, in general, the entire Ukrainian society is a collective victim of the crime of aggression on the part of Russia, international institutions should be involved in order to carry out fair justice both for the leadership of the aggressor state, accomplice states (aiders), and every military person who committed crimes in Ukraine. Key words: international justice, international crime, aggression, internationaltribunal, fair justice, war crime, court, genocide, national security, state security,collective victim, International Criminal Court, crimes against humanity, complicity, self-defense.