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An ambassador claimed during her testimony before a Senate committee Wednesday that the Pentagon was blocking the United States from participating in an international investigation into the so far more than 88,000 alleged Russian war crimes against humanity documented in Ukraine to date.
Beth Van Schaack, ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice, under the U.S. Department of State, testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington, D.C. She appeared hesitant to acknowledge the Pentagon’s role, but ultimately did after a number of statements and questions from senators.
“The State Department has encouraged working with the [International Criminal Court] ICC to bring Putin to justice. It is no secret that Department of Defense is the holdup,” Chairman Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said in his opening statement before Van Schaack.
“I asked the Department of Defense to participate in today’s hearing so we could better understand why they are blocking implementation of federal law,” he said. “Whatever they are thinking, a refusal to implement the law is unacceptable in this situation, blocking critical U.S. assistance for investigations into atrocities in Ukraine, and is dangerous to our system of government.”
RUSSIA’S EARLY MORNING ATTACK ON KYIV KILLS AT LEAST 3, INCLUDING CHILD, WOUNDS OTHERS
Beth Van Schaack, ambassador-at-large for Global Criminal Justice at the U.S. Department of State, testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Capitol Hill, May 31, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
“The Defense Department does not get to pick and choose which laws it will obey,” Menendez said twice for emphasis. “The United States needs to provide full support for investigations that could lead to holding Russian officials accountable. As we continue to hear about Russian forces boiling peoples’ hands in water, systematically raping women while threatening their children, and killing innocent civilians in…
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