Polish president calls for special tribunal for Russian war crimes in Ukraine

Andrzej Duda, the Polish president, speaking at the UN Security Council, has called for the establishment of a special tribunal to investigate Russian war crimes committed in Ukraine and the launching of an international compensation mechanism for Ukraine.

Imperialist Russia has discredited itself as a member of the international community, Duda said during a debate on Ukraine at the UN Security Council on Wednesday, adding that Russia's atrocious actions and its violation of the international order, including the UN Charter, were proof of this.

Perpetrators of international crimes must not go unpunished, Duda continued, adding that they should be brought before appropriate courts as this was the only way to ensure lasting peace in the future.

According to the Polish president, the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine is a date on which the world changed irrevocably.

Duda said that the period of uncertainty would last until a new security system, which would be free of aggression, imperialism and neo-colonialism, had been established.

In his opinion, having redefined geopolitics and having reshaped the whole of European security, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine had completely destroyed the foundations of the international system.

Duda said that Russia, when it had replaced the USSR as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, had agreed to take upon itself greater responsibility for the protection of international security and UN fundamental norms.

But instead of doing this, it has consciously decided to trample these norms and continues to do this, he said.

Duda called on the international community to make a joint effort to defend the fundamental values of international law and warned that this should be done without any delay as "tomorrow it could be too late."