Russia asks ICJ to dismiss Ukraine's claims
That’s according to an Ukrinform correspondent in The Hague.
"The Russian Federation respectfully requests the Court to dismiss all the claims that Ukraine made under the International Convention on the Suppression of Financing of Terrorism and all the claims that Ukraine made under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination," Russian Ambassador to the Netherlands Alexander Shulgin said in his closing speech.
He also said that Ukraine's appeal to the Court is an attempt to justify the war against Donbas. According to him, Ukraine initiated the case to divert attention from its support for Nazism.
"Ukraine came to this court with dirty and bloody hands," says Shulgin.
The Russian side also denied the claim that the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" are terrorist organizations financed by Russia.
Today the International Court of Justice of the United Nations saw the fourth, last day of public hearings in the case "Ukraine v. Russia" regarding Russia's violation of two conventions – on the suppression of the financing of terrorism and on the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination.
The hearings were set to consider the case on the merits.
After hearing all parties, the Court is set to issue a judgment.
As Ukrinform reported earlier, in June, the UN International Court of Justice held public hearings in the case of Russia's violation of conventions on the suppression of the financing of terrorism and on the prohibition of all forms of racial discrimination.
Two rounds of presentations by the parties took place: on June 6 and 12, when the legal team representing Ukraine took the floor, and on June 8 and 14, when the floor was Russia’s.
On November 8, 2019, the UN International Court of Justice recognized its jurisdiction in the case of Russia's violation of the two conventions.
On January 16, 2017, Ukraine filed a lawsuit against Russia with the UN International Court of Justice regarding the violation of the Convention on the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and the Convention on the Prohibition of Racial Discrimination.
Charges against Russia include providing weapons and other aid to illegal armed groups; the downing of flight MH17; shelling of residential areas of Mariupol and Kramatorsk; destruction of a civilian passenger bus near Volnovakha; an explosion during a peaceful meeting in Kharkiv; discrimination against the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar communities; banning the activities of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people; waves of abductions, murders, arbitrary searches, detentions; and restrictions on the teaching of the Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar languages.
