New York, Cologne For the first time, US President Joe Biden has described Russian atrocities in the war in Ukraine as genocide. Biden is escalating the situation, at least rhetorically. Biden has repeatedly called Russian President Vladimir Putin a war criminal. So far, however, he had not uttered the word genocide.
International law experts warn that it should not be that easy to substantiate the crime of genocide. War crimes alone are not enough. The Rome Statute, the treaty basis of the International Criminal Court, defines genocide as a criminal offense aimed at “destroying, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group”.
The international criminal law expert Stefanie Bock from the University of Marburg made it clear: “Genocide is only present when you can prove that someone wants to destroy a protected or national group in a targeted manner.” It is not yet possible to judge whether Russia’s leadership is aiming for this . In any case, it is not enough if Russia wants to bring about a regime change in Ukraine through the war. Even war crimes committed by the Russian army are not in themselves a criterion for assessing whether genocide has occurred.
“The international criminal courts apply very strict standards to this question,” said Bock. The prototype of a genocide was the murder of the Jews in Nazi Germany. “In the case of the Holocaust, it was also proven that the perpetrators wanted to exterminate the Jews. With the resolutions of the Wannsee Conference, the evidence was clear.”
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In Rwanda there was also a genocide by the Hutu militias, said Bock. Another case is the killing of the Yazidis by IS terrorists. The Srebrenica massacre in the former Yugoslavia has also been classified as genocide by the international Yugoslavia tribunal. “But this case was very controversial,” she said.
The expert sees the statement by US President Biden as a political statement. The concept of genocide has enormous political explosive power. Genocide is the worst accusation that can ever be raised.
Russian troops are said to have committed numerous crimes against civilians in the Ukrainian city.
(Photo: dpa)
However, it may be a long time before a legal judgment is reached. The International Criminal Court in The Hague and national courts deal with these questions. “First of all, it’s about securing evidence as part of investigations,” says Bock. In addition to dealing with the war crimes and the question of responsibilities, it should also be about examining a potential genocide.
Russian President Putin could be brought before the International Court of Justice if it can be shown that he ordered the crimes or has effective control over what is happening on the front lines. “That’s the biggest challenge,” says Bock.
Leila Sadat, a professor of international law at Washington University in St. Louis who advises the International Criminal Court, told NPR radio that she sees “evidence of abuses against humanity and war crimes” in Ukraine. However, it is difficult to say whether this is formally sufficient to speak of genocide. The plaintiffs would have to prove before the Court that these atrocities were committed with the aim of destroying, in whole or in part, a particular group.
During his trip to Des Moines, Iowa, Biden said: “Yes, I called it genocide because it is becoming increasingly clear that Putin is trying to wipe out Ukrainians and the evidence is mounting.” He explained: “We will be the lawyers let it be decided at international level whether this is the case or not, but it looks like it to me.”
Washington’s attitude remains
As so often after statements by the US President, observers are puzzled as to whether and with what intention Biden used the word “genocide”. In theory, this could signal a shift in strategy at the White House. However, shortly after Biden’s speech on US television, National Security Council spokesman Matthew Miller made it clear that the use of the term would not change Washington’s attitude.
“The President has never shied away from naming the atrocities we’ve seen on the ground since the beginning of this war in Ukraine,” Miller said. “Nothing will change in our response to that.” The US is working with its allies to investigate these potential war crimes, which is “a long-term process.” At the same time, Miller made it clear again that the USA will not take part militarily in the war in order not to widen the conflict.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) now sees signs of systematic Russian crimes in Ukraine. This is the conclusion reached by three lawyers from Austria, Switzerland and the Czech Republic in a report commissioned by the OSCE and published on Wednesday.
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The three experts made no final judgment as to whether crimes against humanity had been committed. However, they noted that certain patterns of Russian violence “are likely to meet the criteria.” This included targeted killings and kidnappings of civilians, including journalists and officials. The current definition is that broad-based or systematic attacks against civilians are crimes against humanity.
According to the report, Russian units have at least clearly violated their duty to protect civilians. Otherwise, the number of victims would have been far fewer, and far fewer homes, hospitals and schools would have been destroyed, it said.
The US has been cautious about using the word genocide since the creation of the International Criminal Court in 2002. Just last month, Washington used the word for the atrocities in Myanmar. At other times, the US has resisted attempts to take allies like Israel, or even itself, to court for actions in Afghanistan. In addition, the country does not prevent the jurisdiction of the Criminal Court from applying to US citizens.
In the case of the Kremlin, however, the assessment is clear: the US assessment of the Russian measures in Ukraine as “genocide” is unacceptable, says Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
More: Putin’s atrocities: The Ukraine war is the legacy of the Russian president