War in Ukraine, India and Brazil against Russia at the International Criminal Court
Once upon a time there were an Indian, a Ugandan and a Brazilian. Members of the International Court of Justice, voted by surprise against Russia. Although their respective governments had maintained a very ambiguous position on the invasion of Ukraine. A sign of discrepancy with respect to the moves of their executives or an implicit message to Moscow that support also has a limit?
What is certain is that the International Court of Justice has ruled that Russia must “immediately suspend the military operation launched on February 24, 2022 on the territory of Ukraine”. The court said it was “deeply concerned” about the use of force in the country and said it was aware “of the extent of the human tragedy in Ukraine”. Kiev had asked the court to intervene, arguing that Russia had violated the 1948 Genocide Convention by falsely accusing Ukraine of committing genocide and using it as a pretext for the ongoing invasion.
The order also specifies that no evidence was found to support the justifications used by the Kremlin to legitimize the invasion, that is the alleged genocide committed by Kiev against the Russian-speaking populations of eastern Ukraine. Russia did not attend the initial hearing but sent a letter claiming that the court would not have jurisdiction over the case.
War in Ukraine, no possible agreement between Kiev and Moscow on the Criminal Court
A sentence that lays a legal basis and that outlaws the Russian operation according to the Ukrainian government. “The ordinance is binding under international law. Russia must comply immediately. Ignoring the order will further isolate Russia, “Zelensky said. Obviously, Russia does not think so, which has rejected the Hague’s request. “We cannot take this decision into account,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said, stressing that the two sides, Russia and Ukraine, must agree for the decision to be implemented. “And there can be no consensus on this,” he added.
But perhaps the most interesting element of the Court’s voting process comes from the choices of some of the judges. In fact, only China remains partially dissociated, with Judge Xue Hanqin who voted with all the others on the last point only, which provides that both parties must refrain from any action that could aggravate or extend the dispute. But it did not align itself with the judges on the other two points of the device, not rejecting them in toto but expressing “reservations”. All therefore reflecting the Chinese ambiguity that does not support but does not condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
On the other hand, the decision of the Indian judge Dalveer Bhandariwho voted in favor of the interim measures ordered yesterday in Ukraine’s proceedings against Russia under the Convention on the Prevention and Suppression of the crime of genocide. This is despite India abstaining on resolutions condemning Russia in the Security Council, the General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council.
War in Ukraine, Indian judge instrument of Modi’s message to Putin?
Narendra Modi’s government is showing that it is unwilling to endanger its strong ties with Russia over Putin’s actions in Ukraine. Among the Indians there are also those who are openly on the side of Moscow. According to Al Jazeera, for examplesor, hashtags like #IStandWithPutin and #istandwithrussia have been trending on Indian social media. India’s approach to the war in Ukraine is not surprising. Relations between Moscow and New Delhi have been characterized by a “high degree of political and strategic trust”.
New Delhi’s wager is to be able to avoid repercussions because the US needs it with China. As has already happened in recent years with Iran when you were able to circumvent Donald Trump’s sanctions by taking advantage of one or two closed eyes on the part of the White House. Since the beginning of the total invasion of Ukraine by Russia on February 24th, the Indian government remained ambiguous, neither supporting nor condemning the invasion. Refraining on UN resolutions as done by China.
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