The National Police of Ukraine presented the Strategy of the Main Investigation Department “Management of the Investigation of International Crimes Committed in the Context of Armed Conflict”, developed with the support of the Council of Europe within the framework of the Project “Strengthening Ukrainian Law Enforcement Agencies During War and Post-War Period”.
The presentation brought together key players in the field of criminal justice, investigation, representatives of international organizations, international technical assistance programs and civil society in Kyiv today.
While opening the event Ivan VYHIVSKYI, the Head of the National Police of Ukraine, said: “Throughout almost three years of the great confrontation, the police has documented more than 124,5 thousand war crimes committed by Russians all over the territory of Ukraine. Back in the first months of the war, new specialized investigative, operational and analytical units were introduced into the structure of the National Police. Their functions have been focusing exclusively on investigating international crimes and aimed at identifying war criminals. These units use innovative technologies, non-standard methods and mechanisms to document the crimes of Russians, and unit employees are equipped at best. In this context, I would like to thank our partners present here today for technical as well as professional strengthening of the police's capacities. Without your help, it would be much more difficult for us to document the atrocities of the Russians. We thank the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine for the cooperation that allowed us to implement this important project, as well as for the assistance that the Office has provided and continues to provide to the police.”
Maciej Janczak, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine, emphasised: «We are grateful to the NPU for entrusting the Council of Europe with supporting the development of its War Crimes Investigation Management Strategy. It is commendable that the leadership of Investigation Department and War Crimes Division took the initiative and utmost active participation in the Strategy development and provided pivotal contribution to the process of its drafting. We do hope that Strategy implementation will be as effective as its development process. And we stand ready to provide further support every step of the way.”
The Project “Strengthening Ukrainian Law Enforcement Agencies During War and Post-War Period” is being implemented under the Council of Europe's Action Plan for Ukraine “Resilience, Recovery and Reconstruction” for 2023-2026 in cooperation with the National Police of Ukraine, the Security Service of Ukraine and the State Bureau of Investigation.
