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22 May, New York. “It is profoundly disappointing and disturbing to see a fourth veto on the situation in Syria, this time on the referral of Syria conflict to the International Criminal Court, “ said Lithuania’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Raimonda Murmokaitė after the Security Council vote on resolution referring situation in Syria to International Criminal Court (ICC), stressing that such veto would only encourage further impunity on the side of perpetrators of grave violations of human rights and crimes against humanity in Syria and elsewhere.

Lithuania’s representative noted that as a permanent international court with a mandate to prosecute war crimes and crimes against humanity when national authorities were unable or unwilling to do so, the ICC had been created to address exactly the type of situation that exists in Syria today. Referral of the situation in Syria to the ICC could have been the first important step towards addressing impunity in the country.

The UN Security Council today failed to agree on referring Syria to ICC as Russia and China vetoed the resolution that was co-sponsored by 65 states, including Lithuania. During the meeting, some Security Council members called on permanent members of the Council to refrain from the right of veto in cases of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.