President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy took part in the events dedicated to the Day of Prosecutors and presented state awards.
The events were also attended by Prosecutor General of Ukraine Andriy Kostin and Prosecutor General of the Republic of Lithuania Nida Grunskienė. In addition, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ihor Klymenko, Chief of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine Oleksandr Lytvynenko, and Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Oleh Tatarov were present.
The Head of State emphasized that the work of prosecutors is the legal foundation for the protection of the rights and freedoms of Ukrainian citizens, the interests of the state and society. He noted that such a foundation should be as strong as possible both in peacetime and in time of war so that Ukraine could tell the truth about Russian aggression and numerous crimes of the occupier based on facts.
"The quality of the work of Ukrainian prosecutors, investigators, detectives, forensic experts and everyone who is involved and helps is, after all, the inevitability of punishment for Russia for everything it has committed against Ukraine and Ukrainians," the President said.
According to him, more than 110 thousand violations of the laws and customs of war by the Russian occupiers have been documented to date.
"Compiling a proper evidence base for all the atrocities committed by Russians on our land is a very responsible and historically significant work," Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
In addition, as the President emphasized, extremely important results have been achieved in the cooperation between the prosecution authorities of Ukraine and the International Criminal Court: after the opening of the ICC Office in Kyiv, Ukrainian specialists are able to work together with the experts of the International Criminal Court on a daily basis.
"It is very important that the prosecution authorities of Ukraine work promptly on all acts of terror, shelling and abuse that Russia has committed and continues to commit in various Ukrainian regions," the Head of State said.
Also, according to him, those responsible for criminal orders in the Russian army and in the political environment are being promptly identified; crimes of deportation and abduction of Ukrainian children by the Russian occupiers are being investigated.
The President also noted the joint work of the Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine and law enforcement agencies against sanctioned persons, including Russians.
"Ukraine can and will defend its independence. I also have no doubt that Ukraine can ensure fair accountability for all those who brought war and terror to our land. Our state will definitely ensure the relevant processes at all levels, in particular thanks to your work," he emphasized.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy wished the prosecutors maximum efficiency and focus on the results that Ukrainian society and the state objectively need.
The President also presented the Order of Merit III class, the Order of Princess Olga III class, medals "For Labor and Valor" and awarded the honorary titles "Honored Lawyer of Ukraine" to the prosecutors.
After the official part, the Head of State heard a report on the activities of the prosecution bodies on recording and investigating criminal offenses related to the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine.
Yuriy Bielousov, Head of the Department for Combating Crimes Committed during the Armed Conflict at the Office of the Prosecutor General, spoke about the activities of the coordination headquarters that works to investigate such crimes. He informed about the creation and functioning of a unified database that facilitates the preparation of analytics and investigation of crimes, as well as the exchange of large amounts of data. According to Yuriy Bielousov, the prosecution bodies also cooperate with the Security Service of Ukraine and the National Police in this area.
