Ex-foreign minister of Canada: Russian transgressions should be taken to international tribunals

Russian transgressions should be taken to international law tribunals, while sanctions against Moscow must be strengthened.
Lloyd Axworthy, the head of mission for the Canadian observer team in Ukraine and a former federal foreign minister, expressed such an opinion in an article for The Globe and Mail.

“Russian transgressions should be taken to international law tribunals where charges of crimes against humanity can be adjudicated in an open forum. Sanctions, which are biting deeply into the political resolve of Russian elites, must also be strengthened,” Axworthy writes.

He also calls on the international community to enhance Ukraine’s support for capacity-building.

“To help Ukraine’s new government, the international community needs to first enhance its support for capacity-building. Ukraine’s justice system and courts are in need of reform and overhaul in order to become an independent branch of government and an impartial arbiter of law,” the article reads.

According to Axworthy, Canada and Ukraine have to conclude a formal partnership agreement.

“Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland’s decisions to send a major election observation team, play host to the Ukraine Forum and begin co-operative work on cyberthreats are widely admired in Ukraine. These efforts should be bolstered by a formal agreement of Canadian-Ukrainian partnership to push back on those who would undermine democracy,” ex-foreign minister summed up.

As reported, Canada sent about 200 observers to Ukraine’s parliamentary elections led by Lloyd Axworthy. A large group of Canadian observers also worked during the presidential election.