Ukraine aims to leverage Interpol’s mechanisms to pursue Russian war criminals, expanding the possibilities for holding them accountable.
This was reported Vitalii Kasap, head of the Department of International Police Cooperation of the National Police of Ukraine.
Kasap explained that a specific Interpol mechanism designed for cases of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes cannot be used at Ukraine’s request.
"It cannot be applied based on our requests due to certain reservations they see in situations of armed conflict. Since we, as a country, are submitting the request and are a party to this conflict, they concluded that such a situation could harm Interpol’s interests and its member states," Kasap explained.
The Ukrainian side now seeks to use an Interpol General Assembly resolution, which provides mechanisms for prosecuting war criminals.
The resolution outlines three scenarios in which Interpol can process requests:
- A request from an international tribunal, such as the International Criminal Court (ICC).
"For example, the ICC can submit a request for a Red Notice against its suspects, and if everything is in order, the Interpol General Secretariat will publish it," Kasap added.
- A request from a specially created body for investigating a particular situation.
Such a body must be established by the UN Security Council.
- A request from a specific country.
However, Kasap noted that if Ukraine were to submit requests using the 2010 resolution’s mechanisms, they would automatically be forwarded to Russia, which would need to approve them.
