Inter-State Case Concerning Events in Eastern Ukraine 

26 – 01 – 2022

Alessandro Di Pietrantonio

International Justice and Human Rights Researcher

Global Human Rights Defence

The European Court of Human Rights is holding a Grand Chamber hearing on Wednesday 26 January 2022 on the admissibility of the case Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia (application nos. 8019/16, 43800/14 and 28525/20). The case concerns events in eastern Ukraine and encompasses three inter-State applications. Ukraine reported several violations of the European Convention on Human Rights by Russia resulting from the conflict in eastern Ukraine in 2014. It raised complaints under several Articles, including Article 2 (right to life), Article 3 (prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment), Article 5 (right to liberty and security) and Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The application dates from 2014 and it refers to events that occurred in Crimea in 2014.  Ukraine also complained about the alleged abduction of three groups of children in eastern Ukraine between June and August 2014 and their temporary transfer to Russia. The Government of Ukraine stated that the abductions and illegal border-crossings were in violation of Article 3, Article 5, Article 8 (right to respect for private life) and Article 2 of Protocol No. 4 (freedom of movement) to the European Convention.  The Netherlands lodged an application against Russia concerning the shooting down on 17 July 2014 of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, killing 298 persons, including 196 Dutch nationals. The Government of the Netherlands alleges that the Russian Government were responsible for the deaths and failed to investigate them, in breach of Article 2, Article 3 and Article 13 (right to an effective remedy) of the Convention.  The Grand Chamber decided to process the three applications together, this decision was taken in the interests of the efficient administration of justice. Aside from the joined case, there are currently four other inter-State applications and over 8,500 individual applications pending before the Court concerning the events in Crimea, eastern Ukraine and the Sea of Azov

Sources and further reading:

Grand Chamber hearing: inter-State case concerning events in eastern Ukraine, HUDOC, 26 – 01 – 2022

https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng-press#{%22itemid%22:[%22003-7240617-9852450%22]}