Amsterdam, 4 May 2023 (dpa/MIA) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his call for an international tribunal to prosecute Russian war crimes and aggression against his country in a speech on Thursday after visiting the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

Without justice, no peace is possible, Zelensky argued in his speech. He held up the trial of high-ranking Nazi leaders at Nuremberg after World War II as a model for how to deal with Russians implicated in atrocities in Ukraine.

"The sustainability of peace arises from complete justice toward the aggressor," Zelensky said.

Zelensky praised the work of the ICC, which launched investigations shortly after the Russian invasion and in March issued an international arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for alleged war crimes.

"Of course, we all want to see a different Vladimir here in The Hague today, the one who deserves to be sentenced for these criminal actions," Zelensky joked at the beginning of his speech. Putin and Zelensky share versions of the same first name.

Zelensky expressed confidence that Putin would be brought to The Hague to be tried and punished after a Ukrainian victory in the war.

He is expected to meet Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, along with other high-ranking officials, later on Thursday.

It is currently considered extremely unlikely that Putin would actually be extradited to The Hague to be tried by the ICC as Russia does not recognize the court.

Ukraine is also not officially a party to the ICC but has recognized the court's jurisdiction since 2014 to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity committed on Ukrainian territory.
In 2022, Ukrainian laws were amended to allow prosecutors from The Hague to conduct investigations in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian president visited the ICC earlier on Thursday during his unannounced trip to the Netherlands.

Zelensky arrived in the Netherlands on Wednesday evening. The Ukrainian president travelled to the Netherlands from Finland, where he met Nordic leaders.

On Thursday morning, Zelensky was received by the Dutch parliament and spoke with lawmakers. The Netherlands has so far provided around €1.2 billion ($1.3 billion) in military aid to Ukraine in its fight against the Russian invasion.