Sending Letter To Russia To Discuss About Ukraine, Prosecutor Of The International Court Of Justice: I Want To Engage With All Parties

International Court of Justice (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands. (Wikimedia Commons/OSeveno)

JAKARTA - International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor, The Hague, Netherlands Karim Khan said on Wednesday he had issued a formal request to Russia for a meeting with representatives of the relevant agencies to discuss the situation in Ukraine.

"The work of my office with respect to the situation in Ukraine, will always be carried out in a manner consistent with the basic principles of the Rome Statute," he said in a statement, TASS reported on March 17.

"We do our job with independence, impartiality, and integrity. I have underlined that I want to engage with all parties to the conflict," he explained.

"In line with this approach, I have also sent an official request to the Russian Federation to meet with their competent authorities, to discuss the current situation, as it concerns the mandate of my Office," he said.

In my view, the Russian Federation is actively involved in this investigation. And I am ready to meet them."

Although Ukraine is not a member of the ICC, it has submitted two applications after recognizing the court's jurisdiction, with respect to possible crimes committed on its territory since 21 November 2013.

On February 28, Prosecutor Karin Khan said she planned to expand the investigation to all new. Possible crimes that fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC, committed by any party to the conflict.

In response to this, the Kremlin categorically refuted Prosecutor Khan's words about the alleged reasons for opening a case against Russia, given the development of the situation in Ukraine.

In November 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin passed a resolution saying Russia had no plans to become a signatory to the ICC Rome Statute.

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the court failed to live up to expectations and failed to become a truly independent and authoritative international judicial body.