In Versailles in 1919, the victorious allies in World Warfare I hammered out a peace settlement for Europe that finally solely laid the groundwork for extra bloodshed engulfing the continent 20 years later.
This week, EU leaders met on the identical place because the conflict raging at Europe's japanese gate went into its third week.
On the prime of the agenda in Versailles: tips on how to punish Russia additional with out doing an excessive amount of hurt to the European economic system?
Earlier this week, the EU Fee offered plans to cut back Russian vitality imports by two-thirds by the top of the 12 months.
Sure, some wished extra, however there are limits to financial self-sacrifice member states are prepared to decide to.
"I'd not plead to chop off our provides of oil and gasoline in the present day from Russia. It isn't potential, as a result of we'd like the provision and that is the uncomfortable fact," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte stated.
On the identical time, EU leaders poured chilly water on Kyiv's requires a fast-tracked accession that will see Ukraine be a part of the bloc in file time.
Ever because the conflict broke out, Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and his prime officers have repeated requires an accelerated entrance, an unheard-of choice that defies the historically complicated and prolonged negotiations.
However at Thursday's assembly in Versailles, member states solely "acknowledged the European aspirations and the European alternative of Ukraine" and took be aware of the applying that Zelenskyy signed on 28 February, moderately than fulfilling Zelenskyy's request.
One other uncomfortable fact is that arming Ukraine is less complicated stated than achieved.
There have been repeated appeals from Ukraine for extra warplanes.
However the USA rejected a Polish supply to ship its MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine, saying the proposal raised "critical considerations" for the whole NATO alliance.
Different western governments additionally made clear that there was zero urge for food for replenishing the Ukrainian air power.
“We have additionally supplied all types of apparatus and particular person weapons," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated. "In any other case, we should think about very fastidiously what we do in concrete phrases, and that almost all actually would not embrace fighter planes."
The Ukrainians attempt to make their case by pointing at what they consider have been Russian atrocities on the bottom, such because the shelling of a kids's hospital in Mariupol that native authorities referred to as "a conflict crime with none justification".
But, what precisely constitutes a conflict crime is exactly outlined – and laborious to show.
And whether or not Vladimir Putin personally will ever be dropped at justice is, given the circumstances, extremely unlikely.
Marti Flacks, director of the Human Rights Initiative on the Centre for Strategic and Worldwide Research says it will be sophisticated to carry a strong case towards the Russian president.
"Worldwide regulation could be very clear that heads of state wouldn't have immunity from prosecution at worldwide tribunals," Flacks informed Euronews.
"The Worldwide Felony Courtroom itself has introduced expenses towards quite a few heads of state: Omar al-Bashir in Sudan, Moammar Gadhafi in Libya, Laurent Gbagbo in Cote d'Ivoire, however bringing expenses towards the top of state and truly securing their participation as a defendant in a felony trial are two very various things."
"A regular for conviction and a global felony courtroom is extraordinarily excessive. The expectation for prosecuting somebody for conflict crimes and crimes towards humanity is to have the ability to display particular person duty and have the ability to display that they're directing or answerable for a coverage of committing these crimes," he continued.
"And that may be very tough, particularly when you do not have the cooperation of the state from which that sort that individual originates, which we might clearly not have within the case of Russia."
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