The Office of the President explained why Ukraine does not ratify the Rome Statute

Ukraine has still not ratified the Rome Statute due to the fear of the Ukrainian military that they will also appear before the international court due to Russiaʼs "stamping" of various cases. At the same time, lawyers support the ratification of the mentioned statute.

Andriy Smirnov, deputy head of the Presidentʼs Office, and coordinator of the working group on the establishment of the Special International Tribunal told about this in an interview with "Babel".

To the journalistʼs question of why the prosecutorʼs office will not begin to explain to the military that these "prejudices" are groundless, Smirnov answered:

"I think it is inappropriate now. Our military personnel fight for the existence of the country every day and every night, so it is wrong to raise questions in any area of their international criminal responsibility. I know that many experts, members of the government, the Ministry of Justice are for the ratification of the Rome Statute. But it will take some time to properly explain to our military what kind of document it is, why it is being ratified, and whether the country will benefit from it or not. I emphasize: peaceful time. Our military is currently busy with completely different things."

He also noted that the ICC currently does not compel Ukraine to ratify the Rome Statute in an ultimatum.

"Discussions around this really continue, but they are not final," Smirnov emphasized.

• Ukraine signed the Rome Statute on January 20, 2000, but still has not ratified it.
• The International Criminal Court started working in 2002. It is based on the Rome Statute, which defines the procedure of the court, as well as what crimes it considers: genocide, crimes against humanity (rape, torture, deportation), war crimes (murder of civilians, destruction of civilian property, attacks on doctors, etc.) and crimes of aggression (invasion or attack on an independent country, occupation of some of its territory, etc.).