What are the achievements of the Ukrainian Bar Association (UBA) in the international direction of its activity in almost 18 months of the Russia-unleashed full-scale war? May the demolition of the Kakhovka Dam become a basis for the International Criminal Court to file a new indictment against the Russian military and political leadership? What are the current prospects for the establishment of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression? Is there a crisis in the Ukrainian legal services market? These and other questions were answered by Anna Ogrenchuk, President of the UBA, in an interview with the "JURLIGA" web portal.

Speaking about the blowing up of the Kakhovka Dam in June of this year, Anna Ogrenchuk suggested that the International Criminal Court may issue a second arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin for this and similar war crimes committed by Russia. She reminded that the ICC had already investigated the Russian attacks on Ukrainian civil infrastructure, in particular the energy infrastructure, in the fall and winter 2022-2023 as a war crime.

"The demolition of the Kakhovka Dam may become another major case in the proceedings for destruction of civil infrastructure. I would like to add that the ICC did not rule out that systematic missile attacks on the energy infrastructure could be considered as part of another, more terrible crime — genocide. The latest tragedy is just an eloquent act of destruction, of creating conditions unfit for life," the UBA President stressed.

According to her, against the backdrop of the aggressor country's total disregard for the norms of international law, the question of global changes in the international justice system, from the Rome Statute to a radical revision of the global security mechanisms, has arisen.

"It's time to at least start discussions about the possibility of sentencing in absentia at the ICC. Currently, the Rome Statute only provides for the personal presence of the accused in international crimes. It is necessary to remove the jurisdictional gaps regarding prosecution for the crime of aggression. Such a crime exists, but none of the competent judicial institutions has the jurisdiction to prosecute the persons most responsible for it," said Anna Ogrenchuk, reminding that Ukraine must finally ratify the Rome Statute.

The UBA President believes that the establishment of the Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression "will put an end to the impunity of Russia and its leaders over the past 30 years." She explained that there are three possible options for the future Tribunal: 1) on the basis of agreements between Ukraine and the UN with the adoption of a corresponding resolution by the UN General Assembly, 2) a multilateral open international agreement between countries and 3) a so-called "hybrid" court, which will include domestic and international components. At the same time, Anna Ogrenchuk emphasized that the Tribunal should be "as international as possible".

The President also told in detail how the UBA was fighting back the Russian aggression on the legal front and helping Ukrainians to overcome the consequences of the enemy's invasion during almost 18 months of the full-scale war. Anna Ogrenchuk recalled how the UBA Hotline of free legal assistance to war victims started working, how a charitable initiative was launched in cooperation with the Charity Fund "Kind Hearts for Ukraine" to help Ukrainian lawyers who found themselves in difficult life circumstances due to the war.

Among the UBA’s achievements in the field of international cooperation, the President named a joint advocacy campaign with foreign legal associations for the creation of the Special Tribunal, participation in the collection of information on war crimes by Russians and the formation of a criminal file on the Russian military and political leadership, a project on monitoring court proceedings in cases about war crimes, being implemented jointly with USAID, etc. Separately, Anna Ogrenchuk noted the new direction of the UBA’s activity — the creation of a full-fledged system of military justice in Ukraine, which the Association is currently engaged in together with the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

Also, Anna Ogrenchuk, whose tenure as the UBA President is coming to an end, said that she does not plan to run for a second term in this year's elections. According to her, she is leaving the Association as "a stable, institutionally strong, cohesive organization, whose opinion and voice are heard not only in Ukraine, but also abroad, whose opinion and voice are taken into account."

"I was once asked: if I had known that the full-scale war would come in most of my presidency, would I run for election or refuse? The answer is unequivocal: no, I would not refuse. Perhaps, like everyone else, I would prepare better," said Anna Ogrenchuk.

She added that it was a great honor and responsibility for her to chair the Ukrainian Bar Association.

The full version of Anna Ogrenchuk's interview (in Ukrainian) is available via this link.