The International Court of Justice (ICJ), judges declared that Russia violated aspects of a U.N. anti-terrorism treaty. However, the court refrained from passing judgment on Kyiv's claims that Moscow was responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 in 2014 over eastern Ukraine. The ICJ also found Russia in breach of an anti-discrimination treaty for not supporting Ukrainian language education in Crimea post its annexation in 2014. Although Ukraine sought reparations for both violations, the court only mandated Russia to comply with the treaties.
Ukraine's representative, Anton Korynevych, emphasized the significance of the ruling as it officially labeled Russia as a violator of international law for the first time. The lawsuit, filed by Ukraine in 2017, accused Russia of funding pro-Russian separatists, violating the anti-terrorism treaty. The court determined that Moscow failed to investigate plausible allegations of funds sent from Russia to Ukraine for potential terrorist activities.
While ordering Russia to investigate terrorism financing allegations, the court rejected Ukraine's plea for reparations. Notably, the judges declined to rule on the MH17 incident, asserting that violations related to funding terrorism specifically applied to monetary support, not weapons or training. Ukraine had claimed that Russia supplied the missile system responsible for the aircraft's downing.
During the seven-year legal battle, Russia dismissed Ukraine's allegations as fiction. In November 2022, a Dutch court sentenced two Russians and a Ukrainian in absentia to life imprisonment for their roles in the MH17 disaster.
In the Crimea aspect of the case, the court dismissed claims related to the erasure of the culture of ethnic Tatars but affirmed that Russia did not adequately support Ukrainian language education. The ICJ's rulings are final and unappealable, though the court lacks enforcement mechanisms.
Looking ahead, the ICJ is set to deliver another verdict on Friday, addressing Ukraine's accusation that Moscow falsely applied the 1948 Genocide Convention to justify its invasion on February 24, 2022.