Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia on 24 February 2022, which followed the Russian occupation of Crimea and ongoing conflict in Eastern Ukraine since 2014, domestic and international efforts to investigate and prosecute international crimes have intensified, with numerous national and international actors working tirelessly to document, investigate, prosecute, adjudicate and report on international crimes committed in Ukraine. Over the past four years, the focus of the T.M.C. Asser Instituut and Global Rights Compliance’s partnered MATRA-Ukraine project funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been developing tools for and supporting Ukrainian criminal justice actors and other societal actors in their pursuit of domestic accountability amid the ongoing armed conflict.

Bringing Ukrainian actors together with Dutch and international counterparts, this conference will close the project and take stock of progress and achievements in investigating, prosecuting, adjudicating and reporting on international crimes cases domestically in Ukraine since 2020. It will also highlight tools and products developed throughout the project to address gaps in or strengthen the national accountability efforts, as well as concrete recommendations to continue the pursuit of justice and accountability for Ukraine.

The conference will feature three key panels, each addressing core areas of progress:

(1) Strengthening the investigation, prosecution, adjudication and reporting of international crimes in Ukraine: tools to promote best practices

(2) Incorporating child-friendly justice into the investigation and prosecution of international crimes

(3) Monitoring the fairness of domestic cases.