Tag: Press Release

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 28 November 2022.

Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak emphasizes that it is the special international tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, the creation of which our state is calling for, that will make it possible to restore justice and punish all those guilty of the terrible crimes caused by the largest war in Europe since World War II.

He stated this during an online speech at the conference “Possible Scenarios for the Prosecution of Russia for the Crime of Aggression”, which takes place in Paris with the participation of members of the working group on the creation of a special international tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

Andriy Yermak noted that, according to official data of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, during Russia’s full-scale war against our country, more than 47,900 war crimes were committed and more than 8,400 civilians died, including 440 children. 46,000 houses and tens of thousands of civil infrastructure objects were destroyed. Among other things, 1,400 institutions for children were destroyed. 11,400 young Ukrainians were forcibly taken out of the country.

“The atrocities we are facing are shocking. When our law enforcement agencies conducted an exhumation in Izyum, they found a minor girl who was first raped and then brutally killed. They found a boy whose genitals were cut off before execution. We discover such terrible things every time we liberate a new settlement,” said the Head of the Office of the President.

Andriy Yermak emphasized that behind all crimes there is one biggest crime – the so-called mother crime of aggression, without the investigation of which and the punishment of the guilty the truth will never be achieved.

“There is no doubt that Russia bears full responsibility for what was committed. Russian soldiers and their commanders who committed war crimes will be brought to justice. However, this is not enough. Russian officials must be brought to criminal responsibility for the crime of aggression,” he is convinced.

For his part, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Andriy Smyrnov said that after analyzing all available international mechanisms, it became clear that there was a high risk that no one would be prosecuted for the crime of aggression unless a special international tribunal was created, which would only investigate the crime of aggression against of Ukraine.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, which investigates the crimes of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, does not have sufficient jurisdictional powers.

“During the eight months of the war in Ukraine, not a single proceeding related to the crime of aggression was registered at the ICC due to objective reasons,” he noted.

For the purposes of the special international tribunal, the system of punishments used in the International Criminal Court may be used. The punishment for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, after it has been proven, may include imprisonment for a term of up to 30 years or life imprisonment.

As noted by Andriy Yermak, a special international tribunal can be created by signing an agreement between states willing to join it or based on Ukraine’s agreement with an international organization.

The Head of the President’s Office reminded that the creation of a special international tribunal was supported by the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assemblies of the Council of Europe, the OSCE and NATO, the parliaments of Ukraine, Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands, but in the end, the decision of a significant number of countries that would like to join the creation of such a tribunal is needed.

“This is an issue for the whole world. If we do not follow these principles, are we prepared for the fact that one day some dictator will announce his territorial claims to some country? Are we ready for new hybrid wars waged by rulers detached from reality? Will you agree to international blackmail and terror, to the truth distorted by propaganda? Are you ready to accept the death of tens of thousands of innocent people, including many women and children? If not, support the creation of our tribunal! Everyone to the extent that depends on you,” Andriy Yermak urged.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 28 November 2022.

As part of the Grain from Ukraine humanitarian program launched by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy on November 26 during the founding International Summit on Food Security, more than 30 countries and international organizations have already declared their support for this important project.

Japan and the Republic of Korea announced joining the initiative by providing financial assistance.

In particular, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Greece, Estonia, the EU, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Canada, Qatar, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, USA, Türkiye, Hungary, Finland, France, Croatia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Sweden, as well as NATO and the UN announced the financial, technical or logistical contribution to the initiative.

In total, more than 180 million U.S. dollars have already been accumulated within the program.

The collected funds will be used to supply Ukrainian food to countries in Africa and Asia that suffer from famine the most.

The Grain from Ukraine initiative remains open for other countries to join during the entire period of its work.

Ukraine, together with its partners, will continue to make efforts to expand the circle of project participants.

Together, we demonstrate that the elements of the Ukrainian Peace Formula, one of which is global food security, are rational and effective, and they can and should be implemented in the interests of Ukraine and the whole world.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 28 November 2022.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Estonia – Urmas Reinsalu, Iceland – Þórdís Kolbrún R. Gylfadóttir, Latvia – Edgars Rinkēvičs, Lithuania – Gabrielius Landsbergis, Norway – Anniken Huitfeldt, Finland – Pekka Haavisto and Sweden – Tobias Billström.

The Head of State noted that the joint visit of the foreign ministers of the seven Baltic and Northern European states is an important signal of strong support and solidarity of the partner countries with Ukraine, especially in times of the most serious challenges.

“Probably, this is the first time we are hosting you in Ukraine in such a broad composition. We do it with pleasure. We are extremely glad that you are on the side of the truth, on the bright side in this war – on the side of Ukraine and our struggle for independence and freedom,” stressed Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The President of Ukraine thanked the Baltic and Northern European countries for their consistently active and effective support to our state in protecting its territorial integrity and independence.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted, in particular, the significant defense, financial and humanitarian assistance of the Baltic and Northern European partners in the face of Russia’s full-scale armed aggression.

“We especially appreciate the support for the strength of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, medical aid and rehabilitation of our wounded, conducting educational and training missions, which are so important for the Ukrainian military, and support for the forced migrants from Ukraine who went abroad because of the war,” the President emphasized.

The Head of State drew special attention to the challenges of the winter period and Russia’s terror aimed at the civilian energy sector. In this regard, the critical need to provide Ukraine with modern anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense systems and the need for urgent support of our country’s energy system was separately noted.

The parties emphasized the importance of further increasing sanctions pressure on Russia, as well as coordinated work on the creation of a Special Tribunal to investigate the crime of Russian aggression and a mechanism of compensation for damages caused by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the partners for their firm support for Ukraine’s European integration aspirations, in particular with the aim of starting negotiations on joining the European Union as soon as possible, and also noted the importance of further assistance in the implementation of our country’s strategic course towards NATO membership.

The President of Ukraine emphasized the importance of the participation of the relevant states in the implementation of the Ukrainian humanitarian initiative Grain from Ukraine and the important role of the financial contribution of each partner to ensuring food security in the world.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 25 November 2022.

A reliable and effective air and missile defense system of Ukraine can be integrated with NATO and European systems in the future. This was stated by Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak during the meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Commission, which was held in the format of a video conference.

He recalled that at the end of September, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, together with the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament and the Prime Minister, submitted an official application for Ukraine’s membership in NATO. This application means that our country once and for all rejected the option of neutrality or non-aligned status. This is also a demand of Ukrainian society, as about 90% of Ukrainians support joining the Alliance.

“We believe that soon Ukraine will be ready to start the accession process, having passed the MAP in terms of compliance with Alliance standards and the level of interoperability. We believe that Ukraine, as a unique partner of the Alliance in a very special security situation, will have its own smart way to the NATO membership,” said Andriy Yermak.

At the same time, the Head of the President’s Office noted that Ukraine’s joining NATO requires consensus by all the Member States. Until Ukraine reaches it, we need our partners’ consolidated efforts to create effective security guarantees for Ukraine.

“Ukraine has presented the Kyiv Security Compact concept with our proposals on the security guarantees. Our proposals are aimed at mobilizing necessary political, financial, military, and diplomatic resources for Ukraine’s self-defense. These guarantees should protect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and prevent new aggression in the future,” the Head of the President’s Office noted.

According to him, the guarantees’ working principle is simple: Ukraine’s security relies primarily on its ability to defend itself. Ukraine’s effective defense relies on contributions from its allies.

“The Kyiv Security Compact provides that it should be a joint document on strategic partnership between Ukraine and the guarantor states. These commitments should be reliable, as we can’t accept a new set of non-binding assurances that we have according to the infamous Budapest memorandum,” Andriy Yermak explained.

As stated by the Head of the President’s Office, an important component of such security guarantees is our sky effective protection.

In addition, he emphasized the importance of creating a Special Tribunal regarding the crime of aggression against Ukraine committed by the leadership of Russia.

“We are grateful to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly for supporting the establishment of the Special Tribunal. We call on our partners, in particular the Alliance and its member states, to engage into consultations regarding the international treaty on the issue of its creation. Ukraine has prepared relevant draft documents, which could be the basis for further work towards the establishment of the Special Tribunal,” Andriy Yermak informed.

He reminded that the Peace Formula proposed by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy contains the following ten points:

1. Radiation and nuclear safety.
2. Food security.
3. Energy security.
4. Release of all prisoners and deportees.
5. Restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
6. Withdrawal of Russian troops and cessation of hostilities.
7. Justice.
8. Immediate protection of the environment from ecocide.
9. Preventing escalation.
10. Confirmation of the end of the war.

“We don’t know what objects will be hit this time. What we know though, is that Ukraine needs an air shield. What we know is Ukraine needs reliable security guarantees,” the Head of the President’s Office concluded.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 23 November 2022.

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak together with President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola and President of Eurocities and Mayor of Florence Dario Nardella took part in the video conference mode in the official launch in Strasbourg of the Eurocities project to help Ukrainian cities with the supply of generators.

Andriy Yermak thanked Roberta Metsola for her unprecedented leadership and strong support for Ukraine from the European Parliament since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia.

“I would like to use this opportunity to commend today’s decision of the European Parliament on the well-deserved recognition of Russia as a terrorist regime,” he said.

The Head of the Office of the President reminded that in recent months the Russian Federation started terror against the critical infrastructure of Ukraine. He emphasized that depriving civilians of water supply and drainage could trigger a humanitarian catastrophe.

Andriy Yermak emphasized that the project presented today is designed to help Ukrainians survive the most difficult winter in the modern history of the country.

“Generators are essential equipment that will provide people with basic needs: light, communication, access to reliable medical care in the event of a blackout caused by Russian strikes. We need them as a strategic reserve in the face of a complete and continuous blackout that may last for weeks,” he said.

At the same time, the Head of the President’s Office emphasized that the main priority for Ukraine today is the immediate restoration of the power grid. According to him, our country needs high-voltage equipment: autotransformers, automatic transfer switches, relays, arresters.

“The biggest war in Europe over the last half a century continues. However, Ukrainians are convinced: with the support of a united Europe, we will win, and Russia will be defeated,” Andriy Yermak emphasized.

For her part, President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola noted that the EU and its institutions stand in solidarity with Ukraine on the humanitarian, military and financial fronts.

She added that the provision of generators should help ensure energy and water supply for the civilian population and hospitals in Ukraine.

Roberta Metsola called on all European cities and regions to join this project of helping Ukrainians.