 The final item of business is a member's business debate on motion 7345 in the name of Jenny Minto on special tribunal on Russian aggression in Ukraine. This debate will be concluded without any questions being put, and I would ask those members who would wish to speak in the debate. Please press the request to speak button, and I call on Jenny Minto to open the debate up to seven minutes. Please, Ms Minto. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Czech writer Milan Kudera wrote in the book of laughter and forgetting. The first step in liquidating a people is to erase its memory, destroy its books, its culture, its history, then have someone write new books, manufacture a new culture, invent a new history. Before long, the nation will begin to forget what it is and what it was. The world around it will forget even faster. The international community must not allow this to happen to Ukraine. I would like to thank everyone who has supported my motion and those who are speaking in tonight's debate and highlight the work that my colleague Stuart McDonald MP has and continues to do for Ukraine. The motion supports the calls for the establishment of an ad hoc special tribunal with a mandate to investigate and prosecute the crime of aggression allegedly committed by the political and military leadership of the Russian Federation in their illegal and despicable invasion of Ukraine. I am proud to note that Scotland, its Government and Parliament has already sought to step up to the mark in this Europe-wide crisis with the limited powers of its disposal, welcoming over 23,000 displaced Ukrainians largely through the supersponsor scheme, supplying millions in humanitarian, medical and military aid and providing a platform for Ukrainian culture. One year on from the time that Russian planes were in the air over Kiev and from when the Russian tanks invaded sovereign state in an act of aggression, I hope that the Scottish Parliament will add Scotland's voice alongside those of European Parliament and others and support this motion. Watching the news on Monday evening and seeing President Biden walking in step with President Zelensky across the cobbles in Kiev was something to behold. It has been compared to both Kennedy's and Reagan's speeches at the Berlin Wall. Biden said one year later, Kiev stands and Ukraine stands, democracy stands. Like several MSPs, I visited MS Victoria in Leith and one memory stands out. On my phone, I have a photo of a picture drawn by one of the young people on the ship. It depicts a beautiful young woman in a pink gown and high heels, dressed as though ready to go to a party, but instead of a handbag she is carrying an assault rifle, which is firing at a Russian tank emblazoned with a Z. In Crimea, hundreds of Ukrainian children aged between 6 and 16 from the Kharkiv region have been stuck in Russian camps for weeks and in some cases months. In videos, children can be seen in the school playground in Crimea singing the Russian national anthem. Most appear not to know the words. In Kersong, a large lime green cuddly toy marks the spot where a child was killed by Russian shelling walking along the road. In Scotland, children are safe but torn out of their home, their community, their country. In Crimea, children have been forcibly separated from their families, being taught the history and customs of another state. In Ukraine, countless children have been killed. Speaking at the Ministry of Security conference last week, the US vice president said, in the case of Russia's actions in Ukraine, we have examined the evidence, we know the legal standards and there is no doubt that these are crimes against humanity. Kamala Harris went on, and I say to all those who have perpetrated these crimes and to their superiors who are complicit in those crimes, you will be held to account. A crime of aggression is the planning, initiation or execution of a large scale and serious act of aggression using a state military force. Crimes against humanity are considered to be among the most serious offences under the rules of war. Those laws ban attacks on civilians or infrastructure vital to their survival and are set out in international treaties. For example, in Ukraine, numerous missile and drone tax in October and November deprived millions of citizens of at least temporary access to electricity, water, heat and related vital services ahead of cold winter months. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs, a tax on November 23 killed or injured over 30 civilians and interrupted access to power for millions throughout Ukraine. The UN said that the entire population of Kiev had no access to water for the day, and parts of the Kiev, Lviv and Odessa regions were completely disconnected from electricity. By repeatedly targeting critical energy infrastructure, knowing that this will deprive civilians of access to water, heat and health services, Russia appears to be seeking unlawfully to create terror among civilians and make life unsuitable for them, said Ulia Gorbonova, senior Ukraine researcher at Human Rights Watch. With the coldest winter temperatures yet to come, conditions will become more life-threatening, while Russia seems intent on making life untenable for as many Ukrainian civilians as possible. Since the beginning of the invasion, the World Health Organization has reported more than 600 attacks on healthcare facilities, personnel and transport in Ukraine, which have killed at least 100 people. In one of the most notorious attacks, Russian bombs destroyed the children's and maternity hospital in Mariupol on 9 March 2022, injuring dozens of people and killing four, including a pregnant woman and her baby. This attack was justified by the Russians as the hospital had a supposed presence of Ukrainian armed forces, but the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe concluded in a fact-finding report that the airstrike was a war crime. On this, Ukraine's First Lady, Alina Zelenska, said, "...horrible pain. We will never forget and never forgive." In conclusion, aggression is one of the core crimes in international criminal law alongside genocide, crimes against humanity and more crimes. In 1946, the international military tribunal ruled that aggression was the supreme international crime because it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole. A crime against aggression is a crime against peace. In 1991, Ukrainians voted overwhelmingly for independence. Ukraine, as its national anthem proclaims, did not die. The international community cannot stand aside to let the aggressor win. Slava Ukraine. I am grateful to Jenny Mintle for bringing this debate forward, especially since this Friday marks one year since Russia's full-scale illegal invasion of Ukraine. As we reflect on this anniversary, we should reiterate our solidarity with and our support for Ukraine and its people. Millions have had to flee their homes and tens of thousands of people have been killed. The aggression that Russia has committed against Ukraine, particularly in the past 12 months, has rightfully been condemned, but we must see people held accountable too. Article 8Bs of the International Criminal Court's Rome statute define an act of aggression as the use of armed force by a state against the sovereignty, territorial integrity or political independence of another state, and to paraphrase a crime of aggression as the planning, preparation, initiation or execution by a person exercising control over the military action of a state, of an act of aggression which, by its character, gravity and scale constitutes a manifest violation of the charter of the United Nations. As Jenny Mintle set out, there have been calls for the establishment of an ad hoc special tribunal to investigate whether Russia's political and military leadership have committed the crime of aggression and to prosecute where so. That would be an addition to the several on-going investigations into Russia's conduct in Ukraine, including at the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court and the European Court of Human Rights. Of course, some of the alleged crimes that have been reported predate the February 2022 invasion. Putin's invasion has led to the deaths not only of brave Ukrainian soldiers protecting their country but also of many civilians. Last week's figures from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights showed that there had been around 19,000 confirmed civilian casualties in Ukraine. With 7,199 civilians killed, the true figure is probably much higher. The war has also forced millions of Ukrainians from their homes into safer parts of the country to neighbours such as Poland and even as far as the Isles. Indeed, this is the largest refugee crisis and forced movement of people across Europe since the Second World War. It is absolutely right that Europe is united in its opposition to Putin's actions and that countries do everything they can to support refugees fleeing from terror. Last night's event in Parliament postcards from Ukraine highlighted the cultural damage of Russia's invasion, including the destruction of heritage sites and reinforced the need for other countries to give solidarity and support to Ukraine to fight against Putin and preserve their democracy and culture. To conclude, I hope that we see a Ukrainian victory. That is the best outcome for Ukraine as well as for longer-term peace and stability in Europe. Putin's illegal invasion has rightly seen him and his cronies sanctioned and his Government is ever more isolated on the world stage, but justice must also be served. A special tribunal on Russian aggression in Ukraine would help to deliver that by investigating the actions committed under Putin and his generals during this illegal war and prosecuting those responsible for war crimes, crime against civilians and possibly attempted genocide. Accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine must be secured. For securing this important debate on the appalling Russian aggression in Ukraine, I would also like to declare an interest given my personal support for a Ukrainian couple who arrived in Aberdeenshire last year. I am delighted to recognise Aberdeenshire's contribution in being one of the largest host local authorities in Scotland with over 220 refugees. The Ukrainian war led to a flood of people in the UK sharing solidarity for the people of Ukraine, and it was heartening to see people wanting to offer support. From donating money to efforts on the ground to sending supplies to ensure people had access to food, toiletries and clothes. It was truly inspiring to see how many people participated in the UK Government's homes for Ukraine scheme to help those displaced. I was also pleased to assist constituents with the Ukraine family scheme and to have helped to support uniting a family, giving a child a new start for a better future. Russia's invasion in Ukraine is abhorrent. Their lies and deception have been predominant in destabilising an international response to de-escalate tensions. Whilst this debate and this week's activities are quite rightly about Ukraine, we should not lose sight of those in neighbouring countries who are assisting Putin's agenda and committing their own breaches of international law. President Lukashenko in Belarus should be equally aware that the world is watching and will not stop until political prisoners such as Maxime Inghavoc are freed. I know other colleagues here and others from parliaments across Europe have also become symbolic godparents to those unlawfully detained. Since the start of this war a year ago, Ukraine has shown remarkable bravery in their on-going efforts to protect their sovereignty. Earlier this month in the UK Ukraine joint declaration signed during President Zelensky's visit, we affirmed our commitment to support the people of Ukraine in their fight for liberation from Russian aggression. I stand with others in calling for Russia to end this war now, to protect the lives of thousands of Ukrainians from this needless violence. We are proud to be the largest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States and have worked with Ukraine to help train forces and develop their longer-term capabilities. The UK's military, humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine since the invasion has reached nearly £4 billion and over 1,200 Russian individuals and 120 entities have been sanctioned since the invasion. We are working with international organisations to defend the principles of the UN Charter and through several investigations by the Prosecutor General of Ukraine of the UN, it is clear that Russia is responsible for human rights violations carried out in Ukraine. The annexation of Ukrainian territory has been called a violation of international law and the UK government is committed to ensuring that Russia's leaders are held accountable for their atrocities. In March, justice ministers from across the world will meet in London to support the international criminal court investigating the alleged war crimes in Ukraine. A national minute silence will take place at 11am this Friday to mark one year since Russian's invasions of Ukraine. I know that I speak for many when I say that I hope to see peace restored in Ukraine and that this can only be achieved with Ukraine regaining its territorial integrity and justice being delivered for all those who have suffered. Thank you, Mr Burnett. I now call Sarah Boyack to be followed by Stephen Kerr. I want to thank Jenny Minto for bringing this debate today but also for her passionate speech, which reminds us that this is about the people of Ukraine and what they have experienced over the last year. Collette Stevenson was right to talk about the postcards from Ukraine event last night. It was incredibly moving that over 500 historical and archaeological sites have been bombed in an attempt to wipe out Ukrainian culture. Last night's panorama documentary was incredibly moving, which gave people's individual war diaries, which showed you just how horrific and how hellish it is for people. In June last year, the United Nations Security Council convened a meeting 20 years on from the establishment of the international criminal court. It was funded to deliver the Rome statute and aimed to deliver international criminal justice and accountable and accountability. At that meeting, the UK noted that there was already an investigation by the international criminal court under way with the largest referral in history. Prosecutor-Coreal powers are key. Ukrainian authorities, teams sent by Eurojust and several European countries, including France, have documented Russia's crimes, but we need to make sure that there is action following that evidence gathering, because it is not enough just to gather the evidence. If you look at Syria, for example, the United Nations General Assembly had a mechanism, the international and partial and independent mechanism, and that documented crimes committed by Assad, Dream and ISIS. However, without prosecutorial powers, you cannot bring people to justice, so we need to hold Russia and its allies accountable for the atrocities committed by Russia's political and military leadership. Last week, it was important that members of the European Parliament urged the EU in close cooperation with Ukraine and the international community to push for the creation of a special international tribunal to prosecute Putin, his military leadership and allies. The European Parliament emphasised that the EU preparatory work should begin immediately, and when that process begins, we must ensure that the UK will be present, supporting our European and Ukrainian counterparts throughout the process, and using our knowledge and resources to ensure that war crimes do not go unpunished. In an attempt to reverse the current trend and restore credibility to the founding principles of the United Nations Charter, the establishment of an ad hoc special tribunal sends a clear message to Russia and the world. Use of force is prohibited in the international relations between states. We should not just condemn it, we must make sure that international perpetrators of violence, war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity will be brought to justice. Gordon Brown wrote that it is high time that the world took the fight to Putin and his enablers. The UK and the US must act quickly, both for Ukraine's sake and to honour the legacy of the post-World War 2 Nuremberg trials when the free world stood its ground and ensured that war criminals were held accountable. Words to stand by, if we don't get it right this time, the world faces the risk of history being repeated. It's important that we acknowledge that Prosecutor General Andrew Costin has said that his office has 65,000 registered incidents of war crimes, so we need a legal mechanism, action and justice because the act of aggression that began when Russian forces invaded Ukraine last year. We know that our world leaders, European leaders, the German Foreign Minister and Elena Bayer-Cock, asked for the establishment of a special tribunal, so I think that it's important today that we debate this issue in our Parliament. It's right that the UK has accepted Ukraine's invitation to join this coalition. That brings legal expertise right across the UK to the table and it ensures that Russia's leaders are held accountable for their actions. As Jenny Minto's motion says, a Ukrainian victory is necessary for the integrity of the international system as our justice and accountability for Russian crimes, and accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine must be secured. We need to stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine, to stand up for democracy, to deliver justice, to do the work that Alexander Burnett talked about to support people in our homes and our communities across Scotland, but there needs to be accountability for those who have led the aggression against Ukraine and its people, and that's why we need to be unanimous in supporting this motion tonight. I congratulate Jenny Minto on not only the motion but her excellent and very moving speech. I agree completely with Collette Stevenson that we absolutely must see Ukraine prevail against the aggression, otherwise there is no hope or future in any kind of rules-based world order. I declare an interest in this debate, one that you won't read, Presiding Officer, in my register of interests. It's one which I wear as a badge of pride, indeed honour. I am one of about 300 British politicians to have been sanctioned by name, by their Kremlin, I think, along with my friend Douglas Ross and I believe the First Minister. Let me be blunt. This war is not a quarrel in a faraway country between people of whom we know nothing. Those infamous words do not apply. The Ukrainians are our near neighbours. We should not let the war slip from our collective line of vision or from our very consciousness. There is a risk that that is happening already. Yesterday's stage 3 budget debate, a budget set in the context of the global economic impact of Putin's criminal aggression, hardly mentions Ukraine. That does not speak well of the level of our collective debate or our willingness to keep the war, which is raging on our continent to the forefront of our minds. We are kidding ourselves if we think for one moment that we can talk about solidarity with the people of Ukraine with the raw courage of President Zelensky and not acknowledge the cost of that support because it's real. I'm not talking just about the inflationary shock, the effects of which are felt in a global cost of living crisis, the impact of which we are rightly and collectively attempting to mitigate, especially in respect to the most vulnerable in our society. I'm also talking about the military material and the practical support, the training that our armed forces are giving the Ukrainians to equip them with the latest weapon systems to be able to defend themselves. I also, of course, must mention, as did my friend Alexander Burnett, the compassionate support that we are rightly extending to the Ukrainian people who are now living in our homes and among us as our guests. We should remain resolute in support that we have collectively pledged to Ukraine and what the United Kingdom Government is doing to bolster the Ukrainian war effort as they heroically resist the violence that was meted out by Vladimir Putin. However, in today's debate, I also want to strike a caution because the people of Russia are very close to the hearts of my family. It is right that we continue to differentiate and talk explicitly about Vladimir Putin and his grisly gang in the Kremlin. It is right that these crimes are continuously highlighted so that we in the west remember why the people of Ukraine are fighting for their freedom and why we must support them. However, we must be careful, I think, too, and beware of giving in to Russophobia. The people of Russia, many of whom are as appalled as we are with Putin's gangsterism, but Putin is manipulating a whole nation, distorting reality for them by shutting down independent media outlets, crushing dissent and even murdering his opponents. The Russian people are being lied to. The Kremlin will be listening and no doubt cataloging what we say in this chamber tonight, and we should make it perfectly clear that we condemn Vladimir Putin and his crimes and demand that he be brought to justice and want the Russian people to know exactly what is going on, what is happening to their husbands and sons and brothers in the killing fields of Eastern Ukraine as parliamentarians. We have a special responsibility to make it clear and repeatedly so that Putin's invasion—because that is what it was—and occupation of Crimea is illegal, a violation of the sovereign territory of Ukraine, that Putin should be held to account for the illegal downing of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH17. He was at least complicit, if not downright guilty, of mass murder. It is Putin who orders the illegal bombardment of civilian areas, the illegal torturing of prisoners and the use of illegal weapons in Ukraine. The horrors that we have seen over the past eight years are down to Putin, Vladimir Putin will one day have to answer for his crimes. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. In the spirit of the previous speaker, I should perhaps declare an interest as a fellow and proudly sanctioned member of this Parliament by the Putin regime. First, I want to join Jenny Minto by noting the support of her constituents in Argyll and Bute and, indeed, across Scotland in seeking justice and accountability for Russia's war against Ukraine. I commend all the contributions by Jenny Minto, by Collette Stevenson, by Alexander Burnett, by Sarah Boyack and by Stephen Kerr. Let me be clear of the outset. Scotland utterly condemns Russia's barbaric and illegal war against Ukraine and its people. From the very outset of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Scottish Government, all parties in the Scottish Parliament, our local authorities, our community organisations and Scottish families have supported Ukraine and supported Ukrainians. We successfully lobbied the UK Government to agree to a super sponsor scheme and provided £7 million worth of support in cash and kind for basic humanitarian assistance in health, in water and sanitation and shelter for those fleeing Ukraine. We are appalled by the reports of atrocities in Ukraine, intentionally directing missile attacks against civilians and civilian objects constitute war crimes. President Zelensky stood on the steps of Westminster hall two weeks ago and spoke of a coalition of values where justice must prevail. I agree, as I am sure, to all colleagues who have spoken in this debate. Russia's illegal war against Ukraine reminds us just how fragile the post 1945 rules-based international order remains and how real the threat to global peace and human rights. For my generation, the prospect of war on this scale returning to Europe seemed unthinkable until Russia's full-scale invasion 12 months ago. The Scottish Government agrees that those responsible for atrocities committed in Ukraine, including military commanders and other individuals in the Putin regime, must be held accountable. We support the action of the United Kingdom and 42 other countries in referring atrocities committed in Ukraine to the international criminal court. The ICC investigation is underway and we call on all nations to assist the investigation. The Scottish Government also supports Ukraine's application of instituting proceedings against the Russian Federation before the international court of justice under the 1948 convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide. I agree with the president of the European Commission when, in cave recently, she emphasised the importance of justice and welcomed her intent to co-ordinate the collection of evidence via an international centre for the prosecution of the crime of aggression in Ukraine in the Hague. I will briefly. I am grateful to Angus Ortson for giving me away. Would he also join me in hoping that the European Union would reign in Hungary, Slovenia, Greece, Bulgaria and Spain, who are now importing more Russian products than they were before the invasion? Surely he would agree with me that that is something that has to be regretted. The UK has barred 97 per cent of all Russian imports, but those countries are increasing their imports. There should be no let-up in Europe or anywhere else in measures aimed at forcing the Russian regime to withdraw its forces from Ukraine. Scotland has always understood and valued the rule of law at home within its distinct and respected legal system. Our judiciary and lawyers have also played their part on the international stage and they continue to do so. Many Scottish judges and lawyers in both the solicitor and advocate branches of the profession have worked in and have experienced off the ICC or ad hoc courts and tribunals such as Lord Bonomy sitting as a judge at the international criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. Despite having been expelled from the Council of Europe in March, Russia remains accountable in the European Court of Human Rights for human rights violations committed during much off the last year. Ukraine has proposed a new special tribunal on the crime of aggression to be created to ensure that Russia's civilian and military leadership are held to account for their decision to illegally invade Ukraine. I note that a core group of nations has been established to pursue criminal accountability for Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, and the Scottish Government supports the aim of this group. That is to create a mechanism that ensures that Russia's leaders are held to account fully for their actions. There can be no route back to normality or rehabilitation for the Russian Federation unless it complies in full with the judgments issued against it by the relevant international courts. It is now almost a year since Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine, but some nine years since its first wave of aggression when it sees Crimea and installed puppet regimes in the Donbass. The international community's response then proved insufficient in deterring Putin from further violent expansionism. The Ukrainian people's courage has been extraordinary. Ukraine's armed forces have shown that if they are given the tools, they can defeat Russia, and defeat Russia they must. History shows that allowing aggressors to commit crimes against their own people and their neighbours leads to greater suffering. The Russian regime is all too ready to display brutal disregard for human life and human dignity both at home and abroad. The international community must keep supporting Ukraine to help it win the war, and Scotland will continue to play its part. We will ensure that our companies and institutions uphold sanctions against Russia. We will continue to provide a home for displaced Ukrainians for as long as they need it, and we will always raise our voices to support Ukraine's sovereignty and its independence. We will continue to provide as much as we can to support the Ukrainian people and the war effort. That is essential both through Ukraine itself and for longer-term peace and stability in Europe. As President Zelensky said in his address to the European Parliament in Brussels, this is our Europe, these are our rules, this is our way of life, and for Ukraine it's a way home, a way to its home. Slava Ukraini, herroem slava.