Hansard

There should be no let-up in Europe or anywhere else in measures that are aimed at forcing the Russian regime to withdraw its forces from Ukraine.

Scotland has always understood and valued the rule of law at home within its distinct and respected legal system. Our judiciary and lawyers have also played their part on the international stage, and they continue to do so. Many Scottish judges and lawyers in the solicitor and advocate branches of the profession have worked in, and have experience of, the ICC or ad hoc courts and tribunals—for example, Lord Bonomy sat as a judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Despite having been expelled from the Council of Europe in March, Russia remains accountable in the European Court of Human Rights for human rights violations committed during much of the past year.

Ukraine has proposed the creation of a new special tribunal on the crime of aggression to ensure that Russia’s civilian and military leaderships are held to account for the decision to illegally invade Ukraine.

I note that a core group of nations has been established to pursue criminal accountability for Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, and the Scottish Government supports the aim of the group: to create a mechanism that ensures that Russia’s leaders are fully held to account for their actions—a point that was highlighted by Sarah Boyack a few moments ago. There can be no route back to normality or rehabilitation for the Russian Federation unless it complies in full with the judgments issued against it by the relevant international courts.

It is now almost a year since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine; it is some nine years since its first wave of aggression, when it seized Crimea and installed puppet regimes in the Donbas. The international community’s response then proved insufficient in deterring Putin from further violent expansionism. The Ukrainian people’s courage has been extraordinary, and Ukraine’s armed forces have shown that, if they are given the tools, they can defeat Russia—and defeat Russia they must.

History shows that allowing aggressors to commit crimes against their own people and against their neighbours leads to greater suffering. The Russian regime is all too ready to display brutal disregard for human life and human dignity, both at home and abroad. The international community must keep supporting Ukraine to help it win the war, and Scotland will continue to play its part. We will ensure that our companies and institutions uphold sanctions against Russia, we will continue to provide a home for displaced Ukrainians for as long as they need it, and we will always raise our voices to support Ukraine’s sovereignty and independence.

We will continue to provide as much as we can to support the Ukrainian people and the war effort. That is essential, both for Ukraine itself and for longer-term peace and stability in Europe.

As President Zelenskyy said in his address to the European Parliament in Brussels,

“This is our Europe, these are our rules, this is our way of life, and for Ukraine, it’s a way home, a way to its home.”

Slava Ukraini! Heroyam slava!