[Conference] Strengthening Ukraine’s national efforts to investigate, prosecute, adjudicate and report on international crimes

Please note that registrations have closed as we are at capacity. Keep in mind that places are limited and attendance (and seating) is on first come, first served basis. Contact conferencemanager@asser.nl if you have any further questions.

On 24 February of this year, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced the commencement of a ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine, resulting in the invasion of the country by Russian forces and full-scale conflict. This followed the Russian occupation of Crimea and conflict which had ensued in Eastern Ukraine since 2014. The conflict in Ukraine has had a devastating impact on civilians and the country’s infrastructure, and there have been numerous reports of the commission of a number of violations of international humanitarian law and international crimes. Efforts to investigate and prosecute conflict-related crimes have amplified, with a plethora of actors, both national and international, now working to document, investigate, prosecute, adjudicate, and critically follow developments in terms of the vast international crimes committed in Ukraine.

A way forward for Ukrainian national authorities
While on the international level, the response has been unprecedented, international efforts can only cover a fraction of the work to be done, and the Ukrainian authorities have a huge task at hand in navigating the ever-increasing investigations, prosecutions and cases, coordinating with international actors and pursuing accountability efforts.

The focus of the Asser Institute and Global Rights Compliance (GRC)’s partnered MATRA-Ukraine project funded by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which began in 2020, and also of this conference, is on how national efforts can be strengthened in Ukraine to investigate, prosecute, adjudicate and report on international crimes. Questions of relevance in this context include: is the legal framework in place sufficient in terms of international crimes? What assistance do the Office of the Prosecutor General and investigative agencies need in order to conduct effective investigations and prosecutions? What is the role of civil society organisations (CSOs) in this context? How should the judiciary in Ukraine be structured and resourced in order to hear international crimes cases? Why is the critical monitoring of trials by academics, lawyers and journalists so important? What form (if any) should international assistance to Ukrainian national authorities take?

The aim of this conference is to listen to Ukrainian perspectives and re-assess their needs, identify the main challenges, learn best practices from (inter)national experts, and share ideas and insights on how the Ukrainian national authorities could proceed going forward. The conference, which seeks to inform and further fine-tune the activities planned for the second phase of the Asser/GRC MATRA-Ukraine project, will take the form of a series of panel discussions, with plenty of time for Q&A to allow the audience to join in.

Sign up for the conference here.

View the programme here.

For more on the MATRA-Ukraine project’s activities thus far and plans for its second phase, see here.

Please note that registrations have closed as we are at capacity. Keep in mind that places are limited and attendance (and seating) is on first come, first served basis.

MATRA-Ukraine project

The conference is part of the Asser Institute and Global Rights Compliance (GRC)’s partnered MATRA-Ukraine project funded by the Netherlands’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which started in 2020.

Visit the MATRA-Ukraine project website for more information on activities thus far and more information about the broader project set up to assist Ukrainian authorities in dealing with international crimes.