(Burgenstock) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Russia must be held accountable for “the element of genocide” it is committing by kidnapping thousands of Ukrainian children from their homes.
He made the remarks during the Ukraine peace summit on Sunday morning, which brings together representatives of 90 countries in Switzerland, and which aims to spark discussions on the path to ending the war between Russia and the Ukraine.
At the request of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the Prime Minister of Canada co-chaired a session with Norway on the human dimension of war, which affects prisoners of war, civilian detainees and deported children.
PHOTO URS FLUEELER, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
At a press conference afterwards, Mr. Trudeau said they discussed the need for Russia to “commit to the fact” that it kidnapped nearly 20,000 Ukrainian children during the war, specifying that this amounts to an element of genocide and that it is “pure colonialism”.
One of the elements [de génocide], it is the desire to deny or erase the culture of an entire people. And when we see that Russia has kidnapped 20,000 children to re-educate and erase the culture, this is one of the ingredients that should concern the international community.
Justin Trudeau, Canadian Prime Minister
In the absence of Russia, the event is widely seen as a symbolic effort by Kyiv to rally the international community to Ukraine’s cause.
“Of course territorial integrity is essential for Ukraine and for all of us. It is one of the principles of the United Nations Charter that we must defend as an element of international law,” said the Canadian Prime Minister.
“But it is not up to the international community and it is not up to Canada to decide what would be a just peace. It is up to Ukraine to do it and we are here to support Ukraine because they are the victims of Russian aggression,” underlined Justin Trudeau.
Participants faced a delicate balance, with many criticizing Russia for breaking international law while hedging their positions to leave the door open for Moscow to participate in future peace talks that could one day end the conflict.
Several leaders at the summit also stressed the importance of respecting international law around the world.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric drew parallels between the wars in Ukraine and Gaza during the opening plenary on Saturday.
“We firmly believe that this situation represents a serious violation of international law and human rights, the same principles we must say are being ignored by the Israeli government in Gaza,” he said.
As the International Court of Justice hears South Africa’s allegation of genocide against Israel, Prime Minister Trudeau has hesitated to use the term to describe the situation in Gaza.
“We continue to follow the international institutions that we have. We continue to look at the work being done with the ICC [Cour pénale internationale] and the ICJ [Cour internationale de justice]. Canada supports international law and it always will,” he said.
Earlier this month, Spain became the first European country to ask a United Nations court for permission to join South Africa’s petition accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza.
With information from The Associated Press