【Special Court for Crimes of Aggression Against Ukraine on the Verge of Official Launch】
On April 15, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Szybka announced that the Council of Europe has now gathered the minimum required threshold of 16 member states necessary to officially launch the Special Court for Crimes of Aggression Against Ukraine. Iceland and Poland have both signed the Agreement on the Establishment of the "Special Court for Crimes of Aggression Against Ukraine".
Szybka stated, "We have completed all legal preparations for the court’s launch. Those responsible in Moscow must understand: justice is inevitable. From ordinary perpetrators to the highest levels of Russian leadership, no one will be exempt."
On June 25, 2025, President Zelenskyy co-signed the Agreement on the Establishment of the "Special Court for Crimes of Aggression Against Ukraine" with Thorbjørn Berg, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, a pan-European organization comprising 46 member states.
The Council of Europe has set the minimum threshold for the official launch of the court at 16 signatory nations. After Poland and Iceland signed the agreement, the number of participating states reached 17. As of April 15, 2026, the complete list of countries that have formally signed the agreement (listed in order of public disclosure) is as follows:
1. Ukraine (initiator)
2. Latvia
3. Lithuania
4. Estonia
5. Slovakia
6. Slovenia
7. Croatia
8. Romania
9. Bulgaria
10. Germany
11. United Kingdom
12. Netherlands
13. Belgium
14. Luxembourg
15. Portugal (joined on April 12)
16. Poland (joined on April 15)
17. Iceland (joined on April 15)
The Council of Europe's Chișinău meeting on May 14–15 will formally vote on the establishment of the court, determine its seat, and appoint prosecutors and judges.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1862525555351564/
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