Due to the war in Ukraine, Interpol is refusing to issue wanted notices for Russian war criminals, according to the National Police.

In 2022, the National Central Bureau of Interpol in Ukraine reached out to the Interpol General Secretariat (GS) for consultations regarding the search for war criminals. However, after two years of consideration, the GS declined to meet the request from Ukraine, citing that Ukraine is a party to an armed conflict, which could adversely affect the organization's reputation.

This was stated by the head of the International Police Cooperation Department of the National Police of Ukraine Vitaliy Kasap during a press conference titled “Interpol and Other Mechanisms for Prosecuting War Criminals,” as reported by ZMINA.

According to him, at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Ukrainian Interpol officers received several requests from national pre-trial investigation authorities to issue international arrest warrants for Russian war criminals. The term “war criminals” referred to individuals accused by Ukraine of committing serious crimes, whose whereabouts are unknown. If a positive response had been received from Interpol, the organization would have entered this information into its database and marked it with a so-called red notice.

In 2022, the Ukrainian bureau appealed to the General Secretariat of Interpol for assistance in the search and prosecution of Russian war criminals. However, the GS postponed the consideration of this issue indefinitely while simultaneously imposing restrictions on any requests for the search of criminals related to Russia. The organization also decided to review all cases submitted by Russia for compliance with its rules and statutes.

“This also applies to Article 3, which prohibits the processing of any data related to religion, race, military situations, and politics. For example, the request for the search of Yanukovych falls under Article 3 of Interpol's statutes, which is why we received a refusal at that time,” explains Kasap.

The representative of the National Police noted that any national bureau can refer to Article 3 to request consultations from the GS regarding the search for war criminals. It was with such a request that the Ukrainian bureau contacted the General Secretariat of Interpol in 2022. The GS considered this matter for almost two years, conducting internal consultations with various experts. Meanwhile, the Ukrainians consistently emphasized the unacceptability of the prolonged consideration of their request.

“One must remember that Interpol is a very bureaucratic structure with established rules and a charter that is over a hundred years old. Accordingly, they have their own vision regarding how to process such requests and what to pay attention to,” notes the head of the International Police Cooperation Department of the National Police.

Kasap also adds that in May 2024, a response from the GS stated that such requests could be considered without restrictions, but with certain caveats mentioned in resolution AG-2010-RES-10, which allows for the issuance of arrest warrants for those suspected of committing genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Interpol explained its decision by stating that Ukraine is a party to an armed conflict, which could harm the interests of the organization and its member states.

“We received what is known as a refusal because Ukraine is at war, and for Interpol, this could lead to reputational risks. Upon receiving it, we launched a campaign aimed at convincing the GS to reconsider its position,” shares Kasap.

In June 2024, during a conference in Albania, representatives of the Ukrainian Interpol bureau appealed to then-Secretary General of the organization Jürgen Stock to reconsider this decision. To professionally substantiate their position, the Ukrainians engaged international experts as well as representatives from the Prosecutor General's Office and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The General Secretariat of Interpol refused to change its stance. Only after the election of a new Secretary General in November 2024 – Valdes Urquiza – was the issue able to progress.

“Thanks to this, we received an additional boost. And we are very hopeful that the GS will soon fulfill our request to utilize such a tool as resolution 2010,” he says.

Currently, Ukrainian law enforcement is trying to persuade Interpol representatives to remove the hindering factor, namely the war, from the agenda. They believe that from a legal standpoint, there should be no restrictions on the search for war criminals for any member state of the organization, even if it is a party to an armed conflict. If a positive decision is made, Ukrainian law enforcement will be able to issue arrest warrants not only for Russians but also for citizens of other countries committing war crimes on Ukrainian territory.

At the same time, Kasap emphasizes that both Ukraine and Russia can request the search for war criminals. Interpol, upon receiving such a request, must send an inquiry to the country of which the accused is a citizen (in our case, Russia and vice versa). Ukraine, like Russia, must consent to the extradition of the individual, but as noted by the National Police representative, it is unlikely anyone will agree to this.

“If such a mechanism is implemented, Russia will also use it. We will certainly refuse. This is the essence of the organization’s neutrality and objectivity, where its tools work for everyone,” he believes.

It should be reminded that for over 10 years, Russians have committed war crimes on Ukrainian territory. Since the onset of the full-scale invasion, their numbers have increased exponentially. Ukrainian courts periodically issue sentences against Russian war criminals. However, all requests for the international search of these criminals through Interpol have so far been declined.

Interpol is an international criminal police organization that seeks and facilitates the search for people and objects, currently comprising 196 countries worldwide. It is not a law enforcement agency. However, this organization coordinates the work of law enforcement agencies of individual countries when it comes to international crime fighting.