The European Parliament has voted to create a special tribunal to try Vladimir Putin and Russia's political and military leadership, the legislature's website says . 427 parliamentarians voted in favor, 19 voted against, 33 abstained.
“The Parliament firmly believes that the creation of a special tribunal will send a very clear signal to both Russian society and the international community that President Putin and the Russian leadership as a whole can be convicted of the crime of aggression in Ukraine. Members of the European Parliament note that it is no longer possible for the Russian Federation, under the leadership of Putin, to return to normal relations with the West,” the resolution says.
Parliamentarians expect that the tribunal will be created in close cooperation with Ukraine and the international community.
MEPs emphasize that the tribunal should have the power to investigate not only Vladimir Putin and Russia's political and military leadership, but also Alexander Lukashenko and his allies in Belarus .
As DW notes , immunity remains a problem, which now extends to Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko, as well as the fact that Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, which means it is paralyzed in any issue related to the war.
Former President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has already called on the international community to deprive Russia of permanent membership in the UN Security Council and exclude it from all international organizations. In December, a resolution was submitted to the US Congress also calling on President Joe Biden to remove Russia from the UN Security Council in order to weaken Moscow's influence. Gleb Bogush, a specialist in international criminal law, explained to The Insider that it is unrealistic to legally exclude Russia from the UN Security Council.