Chișinău, 15 May 2026: point of no return – or beginning of a long road?

36 states and the EU have signed the Management Committee agreement for the Special Tribunal. What it means in practice – and what still lies ahead.

17 May 2026 · Analysis · NGO Tribunal

On 15 May 2026 in Chișinău, at the 135th Session of the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers, an event took place that is already being described as a historic shift in international criminal law: 36 states and the European Union signed the Enlarged Partial Agreement establishing the Management Committee of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. Among the signatories are 34 CoE member states, alongside Australia and Costa Rica. The Netherlands confirmed it will host the Tribunal's initial phase in The Hague.

This document is the third and final founding instrument of the Tribunal – following the bilateral agreement between Ukraine and the Council of Europe signed in Strasbourg on 25 June 2025, and the Statute defining jurisdiction and procedure. The legal architecture is complete. The Tribunal exists – at least on paper.

"These states have taken a decisive step towards the actual establishment of the Special Tribunal and the recognition of responsibilities for the aggression against Ukraine. The time for Russia to be held to account for its aggression is fast approaching."– Alain Berset, Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Chișinău, 15 May 2026

What has been decided – and what remains

The signing in Chișinău activates the mechanism, but not the court itself. Each participating state must complete its domestic ratification procedures. Only then can the Management Committee begin its work – appointing judges and a prosecutor, adopting procedural rules, and opening investigations. Since February 2026, a preparatory Advance Team has been operating in The Hague and Strasbourg, funded by the EU with €10 million. In parallel, the International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression (ICPA) at Eurojust continues to consolidate the evidentiary record, with prosecutors from Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Romania and Ukraine working jointly.

"Signing this agreement is a concrete legal step that makes the launch of the Tribunal irreversible. Now there is both the political will of the coalition and the necessary legal framework."– Iryna Mudra, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine

The key limitation: immunity of the 'troika'

The Tribunal's Statute provides that the incumbent president, prime minister and foreign minister of the aggressor state enjoy temporary immunity from in absentia proceedings. In practice: Putin, Lavrov and Mishustin cannot be tried in absentia while they remain in office. The prosecutor may, however, file an indictment – proceedings will remain suspended until the accused's status changes. Other officials and senior military commanders enjoy no such protection. The jurisdictional gap that the ICC cannot close is precisely what the Tribunal is designed to fill.

The US and the funding question

The absence of the United States among the signatories is significant, if not fatal. The Trump administration did not join the agreement, raising questions about long-term funding. Current budgets are secured primarily through the EU and the Council of Europe. According to Euronews analysts, financial sustainability remains the new mechanism's most vulnerable point.

"The moral foundation of Europe and the world will only be restored when the crime of aggression against Ukraine is punished. It is not a matter of the past. It is a matter of the future."– Andrii Sybiha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Chișinău, 15 May 2026

Conclusion

Chișinău 2026 is not a verdict – nor even the start of a trial. It is the moment when the international community moved from declarations to binding commitments: the legal architecture is finalised, funding has been allocated, the Advance Team is operational, and a coalition of 36 states and the EU is in place. Ahead lies national ratification, the formation of a judicial bench, the appointment of a prosecutor, and the first real act of indictment. Each step requires time, political will and resources. But the point of no return has been passed.

NGO TRIBUNAL – POSITION

We welcome the Chișinău decision as a qualitative leap from diplomatic intent to legally binding mechanisms. For over three years, we have been documenting the crime of aggression, gathering testimony, and supporting the development of the evidentiary record that will underpin future proceedings.

NGO Tribunal hopes that signatory states will complete their domestic ratification procedures as swiftly as possible, and that the Management Committee will begin its work before the end of 2026. We also call for full transparency in the selection of judges and the prosecutor – only an independent and impartial judicial body will carry genuine authority in the eyes of the world.

We continue to monitor every step of the Tribunal's establishment and will keep the public informed through our weekly digest. Justice is not an abstraction. It is a process – and we are part of it.