Ukraine Becomes the 125th Member of the International Criminal Court - Parliament Ratifies Rome Statute

Today, the Verkhovna Rada ratified the Rome Statute and Ukraine became the 125th member of the International Criminal Court. This was announced by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba.

‘It was a long journey full of challenges, myths and fears. None of them were true. And today we are finally there, thanks to President Zelenskyy, the long-term systematic work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other agencies, as well as the will of Ukrainian parliamentarians,’ Kuleba said. 

He added that by taking this step, Ukraine demonstrates its unwavering commitment to strengthening international justice. ‘Ukraine has already been effectively cooperating with the ICC to ensure comprehensive accountability for all crimes committed by Russia during the Russian aggression. Now this work will be even more effective.

‘With the ratification of the Rome Statute, Ukraine has also made another important step towards EU membership,’ the Ukrainian top diplomat stressed. 

The obligation to ratify the Rome Statute is contained in the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. Ratification of the statute is also mandatory for all EU member states. 

Ukraine signed the Rome Statute back in 2000, but has not ratified it to date, even though the need for ratification was recognised in 2015 by the National Security and Defence Council. One of the reasons given was the fear that the ICC would be able to prosecute Ukrainian citizens.