European court finds Russia broke international law in Ukraine conflict

The European Court of Human Rights ruled on Wednesday that Russia committed multiple breaches of international law in Ukraine — including responsibility for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 — its first such verdict since Moscow’s 2022 invasion.

Delivering the judgment in Strasbourg, a 17-judge panel upheld four inter-state cases brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands, saying Russian forces and their separatist proxies “systematically violated” the European Convention on Human Rights in eastern and southern Ukraine.

The ruling covers a broad catalogue of abuses, from indiscriminate shelling and the forced transfer of Ukrainian children to the shooting-down of Flight MH17, which killed all 298 people on board, among them 196 Dutch citizens. The court said Russia’s “effective control” of rebel-held territory meant it bore legal responsibility.

Families of MH17 victims welcomed the decision. “It’s a real step towards understanding who was really responsible,” said Thomas Schansman, whose 18-year-old son Quinn died in the disaster.

The verdict is largely symbolic because Russia was expelled from the Council of Europe in 2022 and has ignored previous orders. Nonetheless, it gives legal weight to Kyiv’s claim that Moscow’s campaign since 2014 amounts to state-sponsored aggression.

Nearly 10,000 individual applications against Russia remain pending at the court, and Ukraine has filed fresh cases over the ongoing war, according to reports. Separately, the International Court of Justice has ordered Russia to cease hostilities, while Kyiv is pressing for a special tribunal to try senior Russian officials.

Wednesday’s judgment follows a Dutch criminal trial that in 2022 convicted two Russians and a Ukrainian rebel in absentia of murder for their roles in the MH17 attack.

Russia has denied involvement and is expected to dismiss the Strasbourg ruling.

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