Ukrinform discusses implementation of international standards for documenting war crimes and digital evidence
An interagency and international expert meeting dedicated to improving the effectiveness of bringing the Russian Federation to international legal responsibility for international crimes was held in Kyiv at the Ukrinform platform.
The professional discussion was initiated by the Ukrainian National Lobbyists Association.
The event was attended by representatives of the Prosecutor General’s Office, the National Police of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine, the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, international organizations, the United Nations, the academic community, the bar, and members of the Ukrainian Parliament.
The key topic of the discussion was the development of a systematic approach to documenting, qualifying and further international legal prosecution of crimes committed in the context of Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine.
The participants paid special attention to improving the work with digital evidence and materials obtained from open sources (OSINT). In this context, the mechanisms of adaptation and integration of the Berkeley Protocol into the national legal system of Ukraine were discussed.
In particular, they discussed the need to develop interagency guidelines that will ensure a unified approach to the collection, verification, preservation and procedural processing of digital evidence for its further use in national and international courts.
The participants also discussed the prospects of creating an institutional framework for training Ukrainian specialists to work in international judicial institutions, including the International Criminal Court, potential ad hoc tribunals and structures of the International Court of Justice.
During the discussion, it was emphasized that proper documentation of international crimes and technical impeccability of the evidence base are critical to ensure the further legal prospects of the relevant proceedings.
The participants also emphasized that the issues of documenting war crimes and working with digital evidence require both open professional discussion and closed interagency coordination, taking into account security risks and constant monitoring by the Russian Federation.
Following the meeting, the parties agreed to continue professional cooperation to improve the mechanisms for documenting international crimes and implementing international standards in the field of criminal justice in Ukraine.
