New Delhi: Russia skipped a hearing on Monday at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) where Ukraine is appealing an immediate stop to the invasion.
Ukrainian envoy Anton Korynevych said at the United Nation’s highest court: “The fact that Russia’s seats are empty speaks loudly. They are not here in this court of law — they are on a battlefield waging an aggressive war against my country.”
The envoy said Russia “must lay down arms and put forward evidence to justify its invasion”, Reuters reported.
The ICJ also regretted Russia’s absence.
The International Court of Justice at Hague opened two days of hearings — on 7 and 8 March — into Ukraine’s request for an order to stop Russia’s military invasion.
“The International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, will hold public hearings in the case concerning Allegations of Genocide under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Ukraine v. Russian Federation) on Monday 7 and Tuesday 8 March 2022, at the Peace Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court,” read the ICJ statement.
In its application, Ukraine has accused Russia of “planning acts of genocide in Ukraine” and contends that Russia “is intentionally killing and inflicting serious injury on members of the Ukrainian nationality “.
Russian forces had on 24 February launched military operations in Ukraine, three days after Moscow recognised Ukraine’s breakaway regions — Donetsk and Luhansk — as independent entities.
Several NATO countries have come together with military aid to Ukraine and many nations have also imposed sanctions on Moscow.
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