One-year anniversary of the liberation of Bucha

Dear President Zelenskyy,
Distinguished guests,
People of Ukraine,

When brave Ukrainians fiercely stopped the invader from advancing on Kyiv, they exposed a heinous truth. In Bucha, Russian soldiers had looted and burned homes, tortured, raped, and murdered innocent civilians. I was in Bucha after its liberation. The barbarity of the attacks was palpable. The sight of mass graves and body bags lined up on the ground is etched forever in my memory. And so are the people behind the horrific stories.The young men with their hands tied behind their backs, shot in the head. The grandfather who was shot in the back while riding his bicycle. Not even women and children were spared.

One year on, it is clear: What happened in Bucha, was not a random episode. Those executions in cold blood were part of a bigger plan. Cruel, cynical, calculated. The Kremlin wants to eliminate Ukraine. Its statehood, its independence and democracy. And the Kremlin wants to eliminate Ukrainians: Their national identity. Their sense of being. Their history, and their hope in the future. These are war crimes. These are crimes against humanity. And the Bucha massacres have been replicated in other Ukrainian lands occupied by Russian forces.

Another target in Putin's plan is children. Ukraine says over 16.200 children have been abducted. They have been deported to Russia, Removed from their families and communities. Deprived of their childhood and their roots. This is yet another blatant attempt at erasing the Ukrainian identity. It is undeniable. It is unforgivable. And it is punishable. And so, for the first time in history, the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for a leader of a permanent member of the UN Security Council. By charging Putin, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has sent a clear message: there will be no escape for the perpetrator and his henchmen. War criminals will be held accountable for their deeds.

The European Union is working on the collection of evidence and bringing prosecutors together. We have also recently set up an International Coordination Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression. This is done as part of the Joint Investigation Team in Eurojust and in which the ICC also participates.

And we will continue to spearhead efforts to make sure that Putin can be held accountable for the crime of aggression.To that end, we continue to support the creation of a dedicated tribunal if that's what it takes. This is for Ukraine and for every country's right to exist, to be free, and to write its own future. Not only do we want Russia's criminal plan to fail. We want justice for Ukraine and for Ukrainians. Slava Ukraini.