Daily on-the-ground evidence makes it more straightforward to indict Vladimir Putin with war crimes
No war crimes case is easy, but the task of indicting Vladimir Putin at the International Criminal Court (ICC) appears to be straightforward.
There are two key elements necessary to charge a commander-in-chief with war crimes. First are the crimes themselves. Second, the chain-of-command to the top. In the case of Russia’s Ukraine invasion, both seem clear.
The horrors of Bucha and a slew of towns north of Kyiv are gruesome and widespread. They are also, crucially, being recorded in real time. A major problem for war crimes trials in the past was that evidence had to be sifted from chaotic battlefields years after the fact.
This is not the case here. Ukraine’s own investigators are already on the ground, alongside specialists from The Hague. Last month the ICC opened an online evidence portal, inviting ordinary Ukrainians to become part of the investigation process. Russia is not a member of the ICC, but Ukraine has given the court jurisdiction for crimes on its territory, no matter who commits them. [Continue reading…]