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Transcript/Script
US-Russia-War Crimes
HEADLINE: International Prosecutors: ‘Ukraine Is a Crime Scene’
TEASER: International Criminal Court officials visit Bucha to collect evidence and investigate reported Russian war crimes against Ukrainian civilians
PUBLISHED AT: 4/13/2022 at 9:10 p.m.
BYLINE: Cindy Saine
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE:
VIDEOGRAPHER:
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: Jepsen, Reifenrath, DJ (OK)
VIDEO SOURCE (S): Alhurra Skype interview, Saine Skype video interview, AP, AFP, Reuters
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV *x* RADIO __
TRT: 3:40
VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES: We must credit Alhurra Television for the full duration of the Kristina Kvien soundbites))
((INTRO: ))
[[The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, visited the mass graves in Bucha, Ukraine, on Wednesday, telling reporters afterward, “Ukraine is a crime scene.” The United States says it will help document those crimes, as VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.
This video contains graphic images and may not be suitable for all viewers.]]
((NARRATOR))
War crimes prosecutors visited the town of Bucha, near Ukraine’s capital, Wednesday, promising to follow the evidence as forensic experts began their work. The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court spoke to reporters.
[[Radio Intro: Karim Khan is the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court.]]
((Karim Khan, ICC Chief Prosecutor))
“Every individual, particularly civilians, they have certain rights. We must speak for them, and we must insist that we get to the truth of what's taken place, and judges will decide if there is responsibility.”
((NARRATOR))
The ICC, which is based in The Hague, Netherlands, has begun investigating alleged Russian war crimes in Ukraine. Neither Russia nor the U.S. is a member of the world body. The top U.S. diplomat for Ukraine said the world now knows that Russian President Vladimir Putin was lying when he claimed atrocities in cities and towns across Ukraine were “faked” or “staged.”
(( We must credit Alhurra Television for the full duration of the Kristina Kvien soundbites))
[[Radio intro: Kristina Kvien is the U.S. Charge d’Affaires in Ukraine]]
((Kristina Kvien, US Chargé d’Affaires in Ukraine))((Alhurra Television))
((Mandatory Skype Video Courtesy))
“The world knows that he's responsible for the train station blast in Kramatorsk. He's responsible for the atrocities committed in Bucha. He's responsible for the devastation in Mariupol. He's responsible for the devastation in Kharkiv. And there is no one else that he can point the finger to, and the world knows that.”
At the State Department briefing Wednesday, spokesperson Ned Price was repeatedly asked why the U.S. was not pursuing its own war crimes investigation in Ukraine, and if President Joe Biden was premature in using the word “genocide.”
((Ned Price, State Department Spokesperson))
"We are engaged in a process at this very moment to work with partners around the world but in the first instance, our Ukrainian partners to help them collect, to preserve, to document and to share evidence of atrocities, potential war crimes. And yes, if that threshold, that legal threshold is reached, genocide, we are working very closely with the Office of Ukrainian Prosecutor General, who has set up a team under her purview to initiate a criminal case with an eye towards potential prosecutions."
((NARRATOR))
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has called for Putin to be brought before an international tribunal.
((Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukranian President)) ((in Ukrainian with English voiceover))
“All the world's leading states have already condemned Russia's attack on Kramatorsk. We expect a firm global response to this war crime. Like the massacres in Bucha, like many other Russian war crimes, the missile strike on Kramatorsk must be one of the charges at the tribunal, which is bound to happen."
Experts tell VOA that as long as Russian soldiers remain in Russia, access to them is almost impossible. But they said holding war crimes trials to “shame and blame” perpetrators can still make sense
[[Radio intro: Alexander Downes is an associate professor of political science at The George Washington University.]]
((Alexander Downes, George Washington University))
((Skype))
“Now holding war crimes trials, even in absentia, can have a deterrent effect on saying you know, for the lower ranks might say, ‘Hey, I don't want to make myself vulnerable to a potential war crimes prosecution.’ And basically that means you're stuck in Russia for life, because if you leave the country, you can be prosecuted anywhere under what's called universal jurisdiction. And that applies to Vladimir Putin as well.”
((NARRATOR))
On Tuesday, Putin said the reported war crimes in Bucha were “fabricated,” without offering any evidence, and contradicting evidence collected from mass graves and numerous eyewitness reports.
Cindy Saine, VOA News
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateApril 13, 2022 22:02 EDT
BylineCindy Saine, VOA News
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
