U.S., Ukraine Announce Joint Effort to Investigate War Crimes, Sanctions Violators

A mass grave was discovered earlier this year after Rujssian forces retreated from the village of Bucha near Kyev. Photo via CNN still

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin agreed Tuesday in Washington to discuss steps to hold individuals accountable for war crimes and other atrocities in the wake of Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

“The United States stands by the people of Ukraine in their tireless pursuit to uphold the rule of law and seek justice for victims in the face of Russia’s continued aggression,” Garland said in a press statement announcing the agreement.

The leaders outlined areas for enhanced cooperation and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to facilitate collaboration, coordination and deconfliction between each country’s respective investigations and prosecutions.

The top justice authorities in each country will ” work more closely together to identify, apprehend, and prosecute individuals involved in war crimes and other atrocities in Ukraine,” Garland said.

“We will be relentless in these efforts to hold perpetrators accountable.”

The announcement came as investigators began unearthing a mass grave in Izium in eastern Ukraine, which contained the remains of more than 400 individuals, some of them showing signs of torture.

The grave was discovered in the wake of the Russian army’s retreat from the area following a counter-offensive by Ukrainian forces.

“The MOU we signed today allows us to step up our common efforts in ensuring accountability for international crimes,” said Ukraine Prosecutor General Kostin.

Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin ( L) and U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland signing war crimes prosecution agreement in Washington. Photo courtesy Department of Justice

“Through establishing a formal framework of cooperation, we will strengthen effective investigation and prosecution of crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine and provide a measure of justice to victims.”

In a previous meeting in Ukraine, Garland announced the launch of a War Crimes Accountability Team, also meant to investigate potential war crimes and other atrocities.

The countries will investigate potential war crimes over which the United States possesses jurisdiction, such as the killing and wounding of U.S. journalists covering the unprovoked Russian aggression in Ukraine.

The leaders also discussed the importance of continuing efforts to counter Russian illicit finance and sanctions evasion, previously announced by Garland.

The DOJ established Task Force TFKC to allow the U.S. to leverage further the department’s tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. Government in response to Russian military aggression.

The latest joint effort between the U.S. and Ukraine comes seven months into the unprovoked war with no clear end.

In a related development, the International Criminal Court chief prosecutor and European Union judicial cooperation agency Eurojust has launched a set of guidelines for nongovernmental organizations collecting evidence of atrocities in Ukraine and elsewhere around the world, ABC reports. 

“With the war in Ukraine, peace and justice are under the most severe pressure, and accountability for core international crimes and violations of human rights is more than ever essential for international criminal justice,” Eurojust President Ladislav Hamran said in a statement Wednesday.

He said the guidelines will be “a key building block in efforts of authorities and civil society organizations to collect and preserve information and evidence that may become admissible in court.”

Khan said NGOs are “critical partners in our common goal to achieve accountability for international crimes. Now more than ever we must work together to strengthen our common work towards justice.”

James Van Bramer is associate editor of The Crime Report.