Russian President Vladimir Putin must be brought to justice as a "war criminal" for the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said, quoted by Agence France-Presse and Ukrinform.
"It will take great political and legal courage to ensure that every Russian war criminal is brought to justice, including Putin. "This is the way to achieve real indictments and convictions," the Ukrainian leader told the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg last night, after concluding an agreement with the Council of Europe to establish a specialized tribunal to try individuals involved in the "crime of aggression against Ukraine." "And I urge you to remain engaged and continue to play the leading role in this process, as you have been doing so far."
According to him, the tribunal is important because punishment can only be inevitable through justice.
"Wouldn't it be better to focus entirely on weapons, technology and drones? Of course, military support for Ukraine, sanctions against Russia, political pressure on the aggressor - all this is important. And these are things that make Russia feel the true cost of war. Yes, the aggressor must lose. But justice is also important. And it must be working so that war criminals have nowhere to hide - neither in Europe nor elsewhere," Zelensky stressed.
The tribunal is being established to prosecute high-ranking officials responsible for the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and it is theoretically possible that Putin could also be implicated as a defendant.
The Ukrainian head of state said that he had discussed with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit the possibilities of joint production of drones, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
"We also commented on the potential for joint production of drones. We can strengthen each other's strength," Zelensky wrote on the social network "Ex".
The spokesman for the Ukrainian head of state, Serhiy Nikiforov, said, quoted by Ukrinform, that Zelensky showed Trump documents proving that "the Russians transferred the bodies of their citizens under the guise of fallen Ukrainian soldiers, as well as maps of the real situation on the battlefield, which show that the "successes" of the Russians are greatly exaggerated by their propaganda".
The meeting between the two leaders lasted 50 minutes, Ukrinform adds.
Trump, who has already left The Hague, hinted to participants in today's summit that increasing defense spending by the transatlantic alliance's member states could help prevent future aggression by Russia against its neighbors, the Associated Press adds.
NATO allies have agreed to increase their annual defense budget to 5% of their GDP by 2035. Until now, the requirement was for member states to spend 2% of their GDP annually.
"Europe taking greater responsibility for security will help prevent future disasters like the terrible situation with Russia and Ukraine," Trump said at a press conference at the end of the summit, shortly after meeting with Zelensky. "I hope we can find a solution to this problem," the American leader added.
Trump also reiterated his belief that Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to end the war in Ukraine.
"He would like to get out of this thing. It's a mess for him," Trump said. "The other day he called and said, "Can I help you with Iran?". I said, "No, you can help me with Russia," the US president said.
The previous face-to-face meeting between Trump and Zelensky took place in April at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican during the funeral of Pope Francis. Earlier this year, the Republican president clashed sharply with the Ukrainian leader in the Oval Office of the White House.
Zelensky wrote in Ex today that the talks in The Hague were substantive and thanked Trump for American support.
"We discussed the issue of how to achieve a ceasefire and real peace. We also talked about how to protect our people. We appreciate the attention and readiness to move closer to peace," Zelensky added.
Trump left open the possibility of possibly providing Kiev with more American Patriot air defense systems. In response to a question from a Ukrainian reporter who said her husband was a serviceman in the Ukrainian army, Trump acknowledged that sending more Patriot systems would help the Ukrainian cause.
"They really want... "Patriot", Trump noted. "And we'll see if we can provide some of them. We need them too. We supply them to Israel and they are very effective, 100% effective. It's hard to believe how effective they are. They really want that more than anything else," the American president added.
Ukraine has been a central theme at the last few NATO summits, but Zelensky was not in the room at the opening of today's forum in The Hague, the AP points out.
During his election campaign, Trump vowed to quickly end the war in Ukraine, which he said would not have happened if he had won the 2020 presidential election. Since taking office for a second term in January, he has tried to find a solution to the conflict, but has shown frustration with both Putin and Zelensky.
Zelensky received a promise of military aid from the Netherlands on Monday, including drones and radar to help destroy Russian drones. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that London would provide Kiev with 350 air defense missiles worth 70 million pounds ($95 million), the funds raised from interest on confiscated Russian assets.