Today, 1 December, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a screening at Artis cinema of the
US 2025 film Nuremberg. The film was shown exactly 80 years after the start of the Nuremberg trials, where 24 senior leaders of Nazi Germany were prosecuted for committing international crimes.
“The Nuremberg trials proved that a country’s leadership, who were the chief architects of crimes, can actually be held accountable for the gravest violations of international law,” Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna emphasised. “The special tribunal on the crime of aggression to be established under the Council of Europe, which will address Russia’s crime of aggression against Ukraine, is based on the same principle – to prosecute those at the top of Russia’s leadership who bear the greatest responsibility for the attack on Ukraine.”
Minister Tsahkna added that in order to prevent impunity from gaining ground and to counter Russia’s attempts to rewrite international law, the special tribunal must be launched swiftly and with the broadest possible international support. “Estonia is ready to fully support the tribunal and contribute to its work financially. No crime committed by representatives of Russia must go unpunished.”
The special tribunal on the crime of aggression to be established under the Council of Europe will be an independent international court, created on the basis of an agreement between the Council of Europe and Ukraine. Its purpose is to investigate and prosecute those most responsible for committing the crime of aggression. The tribunal will complement the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC). While the ICC investigates crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Ukraine, the special tribunal will focus on the crime of aggression.
The founding documents of the tribunal were prepared by a so‑called core group of lawyers from 40 countries – including Estonia – as well as from the European Union and the Council of Europe. In June this year, Council of Europe Secretary General Alain Berset and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the agreement to establish the tribunal. At present, the text of the enlarged partial agreement is open for signature, allowing participation both by Council of Europe member states and by non‑members. Under this agreement, an administrative committee will be formed and a funding mechanism established to regulate the tribunal’s administrative functioning and approve its budget.
Photos from the special screening of Nuremberg.
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