International Community to help rebuild Ukrainian legal system and champion rule of law
Justice Secretary to join international efforts to assist Ukraine in re-building of justice system.
- Lord Chancellor Alex Chalk attending G7 meeting in Japan and meeting ASEAN justice ministers
- UK Government to also fund new study to help Ukrainian legal system recover
The UK’s Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk, will be working with his international counterparts to champion the rule of law and help rebuild Ukraine’s justice system at the meeting of the G7 Justice Ministers in Japan.
This is the first time Justice Ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will be joining their G7 counterparts at the meeting.
The UK will be supporting G7 initiatives to aid the Ukrainian justice system, including the development of a new Anti-Corruption Taskforce
Government will also announce plans to fund a study into challenges affecting the Ukrainian justice system currently under pressure due to the impact of the Russian invasion and identify reforms to address these problems.
The Ministry of Justice will work with the Government of Ukraine to direct this study towards the most pressing issues hindering investment and confidence in the system, helping to increase transparency and build trust in the judiciary and the consistent enforcement of laws.
The G7 and ASEAN meeting also represents a unique opportunity for G7 and ASEAN countries to forge closer links between their legal sectors.
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Alex Chalk said:
All of us in the G7 have an important role to play in championing the rule of law as the foundation of global stability and economic prosperity.
We will also repledge our international support for Ukraine and the independent investigation by the International Criminal Court into war crimes, and discuss how we can better work together to support Ukraine’s justice system.
The UK, as part of the G7 nations, has played a crucial role in reaffirming international support for holding Russian war criminals accountable for the atrocities committed in Ukraine.
The UK Government funding of up to £30,000 for the study with Ukraine is in addition to the bespoke package of support the UK has offered to the ICC in the last year in the wake of Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, including:
- £1 million additional funding to support investigations over the past year
- A dedicated police liaison officer based in The Hague to lead on swift information sharing between the UK and ICC
- Ongoing defence analysis and monitoring of events in Ukraine, including preservation of any evidence relating to war crimes
- Delivery of war crimes investigation training to Ukrainian police on behalf of the ICC, in collaboration with the Norwegian Police
The G7 Justice Meeting complements The Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) held in London last month, which galvanised international backing for the country in the face of Putin’s ongoing attacks and raised over $60 billion towards Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction. This includes the UK’s new updated commitments of a further $3 billion of guarantees to unlock World Bank lending to Ukraine and £240 million of bilateral assistance.
It follows an international Justice Ministers’ conference held in London earlier this year to boost support for the International Criminal Court’s vital investigations into war crimes.
Over 40 nations were represented at the conference in March, hosted by the UK and the Netherlands, with over £4 million announced in support of the International Criminal Court, including a £1 million contribution from the UK to support the most vulnerable witnesses and victims of war crimes.
The support of over 50 national experts, including a prosecutor from Japan, has been offered to the Court – bringing their specialist knowledge in policing, forensics, and conflict-related sexual violence as well as crimes against children.
The G7 meeting takes place from 6 to 7 July 2023 in Tokyo.