Political expert: Poroshenko's party should not turn ratification of the Rome Statute into a political game

Ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court will help Ukraine more effectively "catch up" with Russia for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. And Petro Poroshenko's party, which opposes the ratification, is thus playing into the hands of the Kremlin. This opinion was expressed by political scientist Petro Oleshchuk, UNN reports.

"No sooner had the Verkhovna Rada begun a detailed consideration of the draft law on the ratification of the Rome Statute than Poroshenko's team began to disperse the betrayal. Various party "experts" came out and unanimously said "it's not the right time", "there are other priorities now", "we lived somehow without the statute", "win the war first", etc.", Oleshchuk noted.

According to him, the ratification of the Rome Statute is a historic decision for Ukraine, as it is necessary to use the entire arsenal of international legal means to punish Russia for its crimes: "The Russians demanded that we withdraw our recognition of the ICC's jurisdiction and not ratify the Rome Statute. If Russia is against it, this is the best argument for it. And those who start political games around this topic are either playing into the hands of the Kremlin or are so short-sighted that they do not realize that the Kremlin is playing them.

Oleshchuk debunked the argument of representatives of Poroshenko's party who say that after ratification, the ICC will be able to try Ukrainian military personnel. He noted that the ICC has had the right to do so for 10 years, as in 2014 and 2015, the Verkhovna Rada twice recognized the court's jurisdiction over the entire territory of Ukraine, first over crimes against humanity, and then over war crimes.

"Ratification of the statute is a requirement in the Association Agreement with the EU. By the way, all members of the European Union are members of the ICC," the political scientist says, emphasizing that ratification of the statute is a requirement in the Association Agreement with the EU.  In addition, it will give Ukraine not only responsibilities but also rights in the ICC: to influence the selection of judges and the ICC prosecutor, to nominate its own judge and to vote for the court's budget.

"We need to ratify the statute in order not to look inconsistent in the international arena. It is strange to demand that other countries execute the ICC warrant for the arrest of Putin and Russian generals, but not ratify the statute ourselves," the political scientist reminds.