Written question No. 681 to the Committee of Ministers | Doc. 13723 | 10 March 2015

The Minsk-II agreement and flight MH17

Question from Mr Pieter OMTZIGT, Netherlands, EPP/CD

The Minsk-II agreement should put an end to fighting in Eastern Ukraine. Paragraph 5 of the agreement reads:

“5. Ensure pardon and amnesty by enacting the law prohibiting the prosecution and punishment of persons in connection with the events that took place in certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine”

But the agreement does not explain which crimes will fall under the amnesty and pardon.

In its Resolution 2202 (2015), the UN Security Council reaffirms its Resolution 2166, which demands that those responsible for the downing of MH17 be held to account and at the same time calls on Parties to implement the Minsk Agreements.

Mr Omtzigt,

to ask the Committee of Ministers:

1. Does the Committee of Ministers unanimously agree that the attack on flight MH17 does not fall under the pardon and amnesty of Minsk-II?

2. Which other serious crimes, like murder and war crimes, should be excluded from the pardon and amnesty?