Armed Conflict Foreign Relations & International Law

The Lawfare Podcast: War Crimes, Tribunals, and Reparations: A Conversation with Ukraine’s Prosecutor General

Eric Ciaramella, Andriy Kostin, Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, Jen Patja
Monday, October 2, 2023, 8:00 AM
How is Ukraine’s top law enforcement official seeking justice for the victims of war crimes?

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Russia’s war against Ukraine is the most documented conflict in history. In every part of Ukraine from which Russian forces have retreated, Ukrainian officials and civil society groups have found shocking evidence of mass atrocities and war crimes: torture, rape, summary executions, forced disappearances, looting, and the destruction of Ukrainian cultural heritage sites. The Ukrainian government is working around the clock to seek justice for the victims, even as the war rages on.

In this special podcast episode, Lawfare Contributing Editor Eric Ciaramella brings you audio from a recent event at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace featuring Ukraine’s Prosecutor General, Andriy Kostin. In his discussion with Carnegie President Tino Cuéllar, Kostin laid out a compelling case for why Ukrainians believe that peace without justice and accountability would be a false peace. Kostin discussed how his office is dealing with the overwhelming caseload and the help it needs from international partners. This event was organized in partnership with the American Society of International Law and the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington.


Eric Ciaramella, a Lawfare contributing editor, is also a senior fellow in the Russia and Eurasia program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he specializes in Ukraine and post-Soviet affairs. He previously served in the U.S. government as an intelligence analyst and policy official, including at the CIA, National Intelligence Council, and National Security Council.
Andriy Kostin is the prosecutor general of Ukraine.
Mariano-Florentino "Tino" Cuéllar is the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Jen Patja is the editor and producer of the Lawfare Podcast and Rational Security. She currently serves as the Co-Executive Director of Virginia Civics, a nonprofit organization that empowers the next generation of leaders in Virginia by promoting constitutional literacy, critical thinking, and civic engagement. She is the former Deputy Director of the Robert H. Smith Center for the Constitution at James Madison's Montpelier and has been a freelance editor for over 20 years.

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