Global Rights Compliance (GRC) is proud to announce the publication of a guide on universal jurisdiction – the Practitioners’ Handbook on Extraterritorial or Universal Jurisdiction to Pursue Accountability for International Crimes Committed in Ukraine (available in English and Ukrainian).
GRC developed the Handbook as a practical tool, designed to assist practitioners in navigating universal jurisdiction frameworks to pursue accountability for core international crimes committed in Ukraine. It offers tailored guidance on universal jurisdiction laws and practice, engaging with domestic authorities and advancing judicial cooperation across borders.
Available in Ukrainian and English, the Handbook includes 13 country profiles spotlighting domestic laws and practices most relevant to the Ukrainian context, thus aiming to foster positive complementarity between Ukrainian and foreign authorities.
To mark the launch of the Handbook GRC hosted a high-level panel discussion at the T.M.C. Asser Instituut in The Hague on 10 June 2025. The event featured H.E. Andriy Kostin, Ambassador of Ukraine to the Netherlands, along with representatives from the Genocide Prosecution Network and the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
In his opening remarks, Ambassador Kostin considered that “this Handbook is not only timely, it is necessary. Ukraine welcomes and fully supports efforts to advance practical tools for accountability. It is a testament to the growing global commitment to ensuring that perpetrators of international crimes will be held to account, regardless of where they are found.” He further spoke of a ‘web of accountability’, comprised of Ukrainian national investigation and prosecution efforts and bilateral and international investigations, towards burden-sharing and expanding the geography of countries addressing this issue.
Clara Gérard-Rodriguez, GRC’s Legal Expert and Lead Drafter of the Practitioner’s Handbook provided an overview of the tool, highlighting its aimed purpose of serving as a comprehensive resource for practitioners, tailored to the situation in Ukraine and built following consultations with Ukrainian and foreign prosecutors and lawyers, judges, academics, and members of civil society.
Jeanne Sulzer, Senior Legal Expert on GRC’s Universal Jurisdiction project, next elaborated on how in the context of Ukraine, universal jurisdiction is seen as a global ‘positive complementary tool’- interacting with domestic efforts and the ICC – for third states to extend their support and willingness to share the responsibility in investigating and prosecuting alleged crimes, stating that “Ukraine’s commitment to a positive complementarity approach is to be commended. Universal jurisdiction is not a last resort, but a tool rooted in the principle of partnership supporting cooperation between jurisdictions to advance and accelerate investigations and prosecutions.”
Oleksandr Ziuz from the Office of the Prosecutor General echoed Ambassador Kostin in speaking of building a network of accountability, both on the national level and through strong connections with international organisations who can support efforts to bring perpetrators to justice, while Matevž Pezdirc from the Genocide Prosecution Network emphasised that Ukraine is fighting on two fronts – on the battlefield and in the courts – and noted the Handbook’s broader value beyond Ukraine.
Dr. Nout van Woudenberg from the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs closed out the discussion, remarking that the Handbook “will undoubtedly serve as a valuable tool for enhancing knowledge and strengthening practice.”
Download the Handbook:
Learn more about the Handbook here.
The Handbook was developed under GRC’s project Support to Ukrainian National Prosecutors and CSOs in Building Strategic Cases under Universal Jurisdiction, part of the ‘Restoring Dignity and Justice in Ukraine’ consortium programme. The programme is funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and implemented by the International Development Law Organisation (IDLO), in partnership with the T.M.C. Asser Instituut, the Center for International Legal Cooperation (CILC), and the Netherlands Helsinki Committee (NHC).