The International Criminal Court said in the statement that the court’s pre-trial chamber concluded that “the two suspects bear responsibility for the missile strikes carried out by forces under their command against the Ukrainian electrical infrastructure in the period from at least October 10, 2022 until at least March 9, 2023.”
The two military commanders allegedly directed attacks on civilian targets and caused excessive incidental harm to civilians or damage to civilian objects, both war crimes under the Rome Statute, the international treaty that established the International Criminal Court.
The Court's Pre-Trial Chamber found that even if civilian objectives such as electrical infrastructure could be classified as military objectives, “the anticipated incidental harm to civilians would have been clearly excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage.”
The court also charged Kobylash and Sokolov with committing inhumane acts, a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute, a more serious category of crimes that has not yet been used in the ICC's investigation into Ukraine. The court said in its statement that this was because the multiple actions against the civilian population were “in accordance with state policy.”
Tuesday's announcement marks the second time the court has issued arrest warrants as part of its investigation into alleged war crimes in Ukraine. Last year, the court issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova Belova, the Russian Commissioner for Children's Rights, for the war crimes of “illegal deportation” and “illegal transfer” of children from occupied territories.
Previous orders had a mostly symbolic effect. Russia, like the United States, does not accept the jurisdiction of the ICC, and the court does not try people in absentia. But it was limited to the Russian President's travel to countries that accept the court's jurisdiction. Last year, Putin skipped an international summit in South Africa shortly after the arrest warrants were published.
Kobylash remains in his position in the Russian Air Force, but several Russian military bloggers reported last month that Sokolov had been dismissed from his position as commander of the Black Sea Fleet after a series of attacks by Ukrainian forces on the Russian Navy. The Russian Ministry of Defense did not comment on these reports.
The ICC's chief prosecutor, British lawyer Karim Khan, announced an investigation into possible war crimes in Ukraine in March 2022. Although Ukraine is also not a party to the court, it has accepted its jurisdiction.
In a post on social media, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he welcomed the new arrest warrants.
“Every Russian commander who orders strikes against Ukrainian civilians and critical infrastructure should know that justice will be done,” Zelensky said. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter. He added: “Everyone who commits such crimes must know that he will be held accountable.”
