Ukraine: Ukrainian officials are developing plans to ensure that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his top military commanders try to start a war six months after Russia's invasion.

Andrey Smirnov, deputy head of Ukraine's presidential administration, is leading the initiative to create a special international tribunal to investigate alleged "crimes of aggression" committed by Russia.

The 2010 Rome Statute adopted the definition of a crime of aggression, and the post-World War II Nuremberg and Tokyo trials introduced the concept of "crimes against the peace".

War crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Ukraine are currently being investigated by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has been trying the worst crimes for the past 20 years.

However, it is unable to investigate allegations of aggression because neither Russia nor Ukraine has ratified the Rome Statute.

According to Smirnov, this court is "the only way to ensure that the criminals who started the Ukraine war are quickly held accountable."
"The memory of the world is limited. That's why I want this tribunal to go away next year.

Although the tribunal "will work to ensure that these people are labeled as criminals, and that they cannot travel in the civilized world," he said, Ukraine knows the accused will not be present.

Ukrainian prosecutors have so far named nearly 600 suspects involved in the attack, including senior military leaders, politicians and commentators.

Governments can sign a draft of an international treaty that establishes tribunals.

Any convicted criminals can be detained there as court decisions will then be recognized on the soil of the signatory countries.

According to Smirnov, several countries are expected to ratify the agreement before the end of the year, and talks are underway with "a number of European partners [who are] willing to host the tribunal".
He stressed that he "fully understands" the need for strong legitimacy for the court, adding that "we want the decisions of this court to be recognized."

Despite many reforms, Ukraine's courts have historically been criticized for their lack of independence and corruption.

The proposals have received strong support from Ukraine's closest allies, Poland and the Baltic states, but Germany and France have responded with more restraint.

Political factors may be responsible for this.
According to Smirnov, while acknowledging aggression against Ukraine, some nations are attempting to maintain a slim window of opportunity for talks with Vladimir Putin.
But the idea is slowly gaining more support in Western Europe as well.

On 19 May, the European Parliament called for the creation of a special international court for crimes of aggression.
Additionally, the idea of ​​a special court was considered a "very valid point" by Dutch Foreign Minister Vopke Hoekstra last month while speaking at an international conference in The Hague on war crimes in Ukraine.

Arrest of a Russian opposition person

According to reports, prominent Russian opposition politician and former mayor of Yekaterinburg Yevgeny Roizman was detained on Wednesday.

According to news site e1.ru, which displayed a video of Roizman discussing his arrest, he is accused of spreading false information about the Russian military in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

He will be initially detained for 48 hours, after which a city court will decide what to do next. Roizman, one of the last outspoken Kremlin opponents still engaged in public discourse, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

In Yekaterinburg, the 59-year-old is the owner of a museum and a charitable foundation. The director of the foundation claimed that heavily armed and disguised security personnel entered the charitable facility without showing a search warrant. Additionally, Roizman's offices were searched.

Documents, computers and other gadgets were seized, according to Russian news agency TASS.

In a quiet show of support, dozens took to the streets of the city early in the morning. The former mayor, Roizmann, continues to enjoy a large following in the metropolis east of the Ural Mountains. According to reports, many people have been arrested.

Kira Yermish, a spokeswoman for detained opposition leader Alexei Navalny, said Putin had scheduled the arrest six months ago on the anniversary of his invasion of Ukraine.

There are still some opposition figures, but none are as famous or as well-liked as Roizman.

According to political analyst Abbas Galyamov, the arrest was scheduled to divert attention from the conflict in Russia.

According to Galyamov, the opposition cannot be independent because more people are listening to it.

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