ICJ asks Russia to immediately cease attacks on Ukraine

In a significant order, the International Court of Justice, the top court of the United Nations, has asked Russia to immediately suspend attacks and cease all military operations in Ukraine,

In a significant order, the International Court of Justice, the top court of the United Nations, has asked Russia to immediately suspend attacks and cease all military operations in Ukraine, stating that the court had not seen any evidence to support the Russia’s justification for the war.

In delivering the ruling at The Hague, Netherlands, President of the ICJ, Joan Donoghue outlined that the necessary conditions were met to give the ICJ the authority to indicate provisional measures, saying that the rights asserted by Ukraine are plausible and the condition of urgency was met in those acts.

The order was in response to a Ukrainian appeal to the court on 26 February, asking for an urgent ruling on Russia’s unsupported claims that Ukrainian forces were committing genocide in Russian-backed enclaves in Luhansk and Donetsk, regions in eastern Ukraine, as a justification for the attack.

The ICJ court ruled by 13 votes in favour to stop the invasion and two had only the Russian and Chinese judges voting against it. ICJ rulings are binding under the UN Charter but at the same time, it has no means of enforcement. It is unlikely to influence Russian President Vladimir Putin’s choices, but it does provide an authoritative refutation of his frequently used pretext for starting the war.

Meanwhile, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, while welcoming the verdict of the top court said that in his Twitter handle that, Ukraine has gained a complete victory in its case against Russia at the international court of justice.

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