Photo: Presiding judge Joan Donoghue is seen on a screen at The Hague as the court orders Russia to halt its invasion of Ukraine. Photograph: Piroschka van de Wouw/Reuters
The United Nations international court of justice (ICJ) in The Hague, The Netherlands, has demanded that Russia halt its invasion of Ukraine and has said that it has seen no evidence of alleged genocide by the Ukrainian state against ethnic Russians within Ukraine.
In a court ruling, the judges said:
"The Russian Federation shall immediately suspend military operations that it commenced on 24 February 2022 in the territory of Ukraine."
Russian and Chinese judges sitting in the court refused to endorse the findings.
US judge Joan Donoghue, the president of the court, said:
"The court considers that Ukraine has a plausible right not to be subjected to military operations by the Russian Federation."
Adding that there was no evidence whatsoever of a genocide taking place in Ukraine against Russians.
One of the main excuses Russia has used in its invasion of Ukraine is that ethnic Russians, primarily in the Donbass region, are being subjected to a genocide at the hands of Ukrainian soldiers and neo-Nazi militia.
Following the court's decision, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky tweeted:
"Ukraine gained a complete victory in its case against Russia at the international court of justice… The ICJ ordered to immediately stop the invasion. The order is binding under international law. Russia must comply immediately. Ignoring the order will isolate Russia even further."
Marko Milanovic, professor of public international law at the University of Nottingham, explained the court's findings in a law blog, in which they said:
"The court essentially accepted all of the arguments made by Ukraine. Russia's failure to comply with the order will have the same effect as its non-appearance – a showing of disrespect for international law and institutions, causing it reputational harm while presenting Ukraine as a state using legal methods of peaceful dispute settlement."
The war is now entering its fourth week and has crawled to a stalemate as Russian forces attempt to encircle and besiege Ukraine's major cities in the south, north and east. It is thought as many as 10,000 Russian soldiers have already been killed by the Ukrainian defenders.
[Based on reporting by: The Guardian]
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