PACE supports Ukraine's NATO bid and Zelensky's peace formula.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a resolution on the political consequences of Russia's aggression against Ukraine on June 22, according to  Maria Mezentseva[1], the head of the Ukrainian delegation. The resolution reportedly supports Ukraine's bid[2] to join NATO, backs the peace formula[3] outlined by President Volodymyr Zelensky, and recognizes Russia guilty of ecocide[4] in Ukraine caused by the Kakhovka dam destruction. By adopting the document, PACE has urged its members to declare Wagner Group and other paramilitary formations taking part in Russia's war as terrorist groups as well as create a public register of companies and individuals working for Russia's benefit.

In addition, PACE supported the creation of strategic European economic autonomy from Russian oil and gas "as Russia's main tool of blackmailing Europe," Mezentseva wrote on Facebook.

EU top justice official: We aren't waiting for war's end to prosecute Russian crimes As Russia's war against Ukraine rages on, the European Union's top justice official says the EU and its partners want to bring all perpetrators of international crimes to justice. "Not only war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, but also the crime of aggression," European Commissioner f...

[5]

The document supports implementing other measures aiming to prevent Russia from circumventing international sanctions and sourcing its war machine. On the same day, PACE tweeted[6] that it had adopted another resolution, calling on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to continue its ban on Russia and Belarus from competing in international sporting events, including the 2024 Olympic Games.

In March 2023, the IOC recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes be allowed back into international competition if they do so as "individual neutral athletes." They were banned from competing following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. "In the current context, their participation in the Games was 'unthinkable,'" the parliamentarians said, cited by the PACE press service. "This would certainly be used as a tool of propaganda and would prevent other athletes - not least Ukrainian athletes - from participating." "As Russian and Belarusian elite athletes receive state salaries and are often part of military sports teams, it seems impossible that they could demonstrate their neutrality and distance from these regimes," reads the tweet.

Ukraine's sports minister: As Russia kills our athletes, it's not the time to allow Russians back to international sports

Editor's Note: This interview was recorded before the International Olympics Committee's announcement on allowing some Russian and Belarusian athletes to take part in Olympic qualification tournaments. Following the executive board meeting on March 28, the International Olympics Committee (IOC) rec...

[7] Dinara Khalilova

News editor

Dinara Khalilova is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. She has previously worked as a fixer and local producer for Sky News.

Dinara holds a BA in journalism from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv and a Master's degree in media and communication from Bournemouth University in the UK.

References

  1. ^ Maria Mezentseva (www.facebook.com)
  2. ^ bid (kyivindependent.com)
  3. ^ peace formula (kyivindependent.com)
  4. ^ ecocide (kyivindependent.com)
  5. ^ EU top justice official: We aren't waiting for war's end to prosecute Russian crimesAs Russia's war against Ukraine rages on, the European Union's top justice official says the EU and its partners want to bring all perpetrators of international crimes to justice. "Not only war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, but also the crime of aggression," European Commissioner f... (kyivindependent.com)
  6. ^ tweeted (twitter.com)
  7. ^ Ukraine's sports minister: As Russia kills our athletes, it's not the time to allow Russians back to international sportsEditor's Note: This interview was recorded before the International Olympics Committee's announcement on allowing some Russian and Belarusian athletes to take part in Olympic qualification tournaments.

    Following the executive board meeting on March 28, the International Olympics Committee (IOC) rec... (kyivindependent.com)

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