Another important ICJ ruling
...but you may not have heard/read about it!
Depending on which news sources you follow, you might have read today (31/01/2024) about the International Court of Justice rulings regarding Ukraine’s “terrorism” claim against Russia. Actually, most of the western MSM has not mentioned it. A quick Google Search returns very few agencies/sources reporting about it, mainly Reuters and Al Jazeera; you will not find other big names, such as New York Times, Washington Post, The Guardian, BBC, etc.
Well… actually, if you follow the Russia - Ukraine war live on The Guardian, you probably read about it, though they span it in favour of Ukraine:
I think Maria Zakharova’s report on her Telegram channel, the spokesperson of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is more accurate and to the point, so here is its English translation for you - all emphasis mine:
⚡️ On the UN International Court of Justice recognising the absence of discrimination against Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians in Russia and completely denying Ukraine any compensation for its claims (https://www.mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/news/1928849/)
💬 On 31 January, the UN International Court of Justice issued a final ruling on the proceedings initiated by Ukraine in January 2017 with Russia under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (https://www.un.org/ru/documents/decl_conv/conventions/raceconv.shtml) (ICERD). The Court rejected almost all of Ukraine's claims and recognised that Russia's policy complied with its obligations under the Convention. There is no discrimination against Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea.
The main of the false accusations stated against Russia:
- Kiev tried to issue law enforcement measures against members of the terrorist organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir and the extremist organisations Tablighi Jamaat and Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People for allegedly persecuting Crimean Tatars on ethnic grounds. The International Court of Justice disagreed with this assessment. The Court did not find elements of discrimination in the provisions of Russian anti-extremist legislation, nor did it find any signs of racial discrimination in the application of those provisions by Russian law enforcement agencies.
- The Court also found no violation of the Convention with regard to the banning of the so-called "Mejlis", which is recognised as an extremist organisation in Russia. The judgement stresses that the representative body of the Crimean Tatars is the Kurultai, which has not been banned and continues to fulfil its functions in Crimea.
- Ukraine's accusations of Russia's alleged involvement in targeted "killings" and "abductions" of Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea were rejected.
- The Court rejected all of Ukraine's claims on citizenship issues, finding no racial discrimination in Russia's legal regime for granting citizenship on the peninsula since 2014.
- Ukraine's accusations of alleged infringement of the rights of Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians in Crimea to access national media, to assemble and rally, and to preserve cultural heritage sites were also not considered substantiated.
- Russia's restoration of the Khan Palace in Bakhchisarai turned out not to be a "cultural catastrophe", as Ukrainian representatives claimed, but a necessary measure to eliminate the consequences of the negligence of the Ukrainian authorities, who had reduced this historical and cultural monument to a dilapidated state.
- The International Court of Justice recognised that Crimean residents have access to education in the Crimean Tatar and Ukrainian languages. However, the majority ruled that the dramatic reduction in the number of Ukrainian-language schools following the 2014 transfer of the Crimean peninsula to the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation constituted a violation of ICERD obligations with regard to the right to education.
☝️ This is a rather controversial judgement, especially given the Court's finding that the choice of the Crimeans to study in Russian was purely voluntary. Did the Russian authorities have to forcibly "drag" children into Ukrainian schools? One way or another, everyone will continue to be given the opportunity to be educated in the Ukrainian language in accordance with the legislation in force.
***
✅ The case is concluded, no special action is required from Russia in the implementation of this judgement, and all of Ukraine's compensation claims have been rejected.
UPDATE (01/02/2024): Russia’s Foreign Ministry released also another media notice that I did not pick up, but that Karl Sanchez did, so I refer to his latest post for it - you can skip the first part, as it is the same as above, and go straight to the second half:
Too funny! While you were writing your comment at my site, I was writing the MFA's PRs up into their own article. Yes, I do adore Maria; she would've made a fine daughter.