Ukraine became the 125th state party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
As Ukrinform reports, the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag was installed in the courthouse among the flags of the ICC member states.
By becoming a full member of the Rome Statute of ICC, Ukraine gained the opportunity to participate in the Assembly of States Parties of ICC, submit issues for its consideration, vote on the distribution of the ICC budget, participate in the elections of judges and other elected officials, in particular the ICC Prosecutor, influence the priorities of ICC and the development of amendments to the Rome Statute.
The Assembly of States Parties will elect new judges in December 2026. Ukraine will be able to nominate its candidate and vote for others.
Ukraineʼs full participation in ICC will facilitate access for Ukrainians who have suffered from Russian crimes to the ICCʼs special Trust Fund for Victims.
What preceded
The Rome Statute is an international treaty that became the basis for the creation of ICC and defined the list of crimes that the court has the right to investigate: war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, and crimes of aggression.
On August 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on the ratification of the Rome Statute.
And on October 22, Zelensky signed Law No. 11484, which brings the Criminal Code of Ukraine into line with the norms of the Rome Statute. In particular, the law criminalizes crimes against humanity and introduces command responsibility, meaning commanders will be held responsible for war crimes committed by their subordinates, even if they did not personally commit them, but knew about them and ignored them.
Why did Ukraine ratify the Rome Statute?
First, this requirement is in the Association Agreement with the EU. If Ukraine wants to join the European Union, the charter had to be ratified.
It is also necessary so that opponents do not accuse Ukraine of double standards. In particular, it is now demanding that other countries execute the ICC warrants for the arrest of a number of high-ranking Russian officials, including Vladimir Putin, while it itself has not ratified the statute.
In addition, ratification is needed so that Ukrainian victims of Russian crimes can receive compensation from the ICCʼs special trust fund. After ratification, Ukraine has the opportunity to influence the distribution of the fundʼs funds.
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