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Speech by Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard on Ensuring Accountability for Russia's Crimes Against Ukraine

Government Offices of Sweden

Speech by Maria Malmer Stenergard

Published 24 September 2025

Speech by Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenegard. Delivered at the UN General Assembly in New York, September 24th 2025.

Check against delivery.

President Zelenskyy, Excellencies, Distinguished colleagues,

It is an honour to address this event during the 80th anniversary of the United Nations charter - a time to reaffirm our commitment to the principles that underpin international peace, security and cooperation. In this context, allow me to briefly make two key points.

First: Russia is the aggressor. And aggression must never be rewarded. Crimea is Ukraine - as are Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity is not optional; it is a binding legal obligation and at the core of our international cooperation.

Disregarding the rules and principles enshrined in the UN Charter would not only risk renewed aggression against Ukraine, but would also set a dangerous precedent for international peace and security. Moreover, we owe this to the Ukrainians on the temporarily occupied areas and to those who bravely fight for their freedom.

Second: Justice will prevail. We are firmly committed to ensuring full accountability for the countless crimes and human rights violations. The children unlawfully taken from their families must return home. Those arbitrarily detained must be released. Eleven years after the illegal annexation of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol and four years into the full-scale invasion, independent reports have documented large-scale violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law.

These include extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, unlawful deportations and forcible transfer of children, enforced disappearances, forced mobilisation of Ukrainian civilians into Russia's Armed Forces, politically motivated prosecutions, and repression of ethnic and religious groups - in particular Crimean Tatars.

Accountability is key for justice to the victims and a deterrent against future violations. In this context, we welcome the steps taken towards establishing a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine and an International Claims Commission for Ukraine.

Before ending, I would like to underline that the immense suffering and the tragic loss of innocent lives in Ukraine, including children, could end immediately if Russia agreed to a full and unconditional ceasefire. But since Russia shows no interest in peace, as shown by the continuous and indiscriminate attacks, we must keep maximising our pressure on Russia and support for Ukraine in its legitimate pursuit of a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace.

We will continue to stand with Ukraine and with those who uphold international law.

Thank you, and Slava Ukraini.