Chris Stephen

Author: The Future of War Crimes Justice (2024) Judgement Day: The Trial of Slobodan Milosevic (2006) War correspondent The Guardian + other media

Articles

Wildcat or Whale? Europe’s New Ukraine War Crimes Court

3 weeks ago | cepa.org | Chris Stephen

“I had hoped we were hurling a wildcat onto the shore,” Winston Churchill once said of a failed amphibious operation. “Instead, we got a stranded whale.” That may be the fate of Europe’s new crime of aggression court for Ukraine, launched this month with much fanfare, but which may never hold a trial. The Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine was approved by European ministers on May 9.
Duterte’s Fall Gives The Hague a Lifeline

2 months ago | danperry.substack.com | Chris Stephen |Dan Perry

By Chris StephenWhat does a court do when it has no cases to try? Shut down? Sell the furniture? Hire out robes and courtroom for weddings and bachelor parties? That was the problem facing the International Criminal Court. Its judges knew that when their existing cases wound up this summer, there were no more to come. Not because the ICC has no suspects. There are more than 30 at large, but none are being arrested. By this time next year, the jail would be empty, and the courtroom too.
BREAKING: ICC chief prosecutor sanctioned by US

Feb 13, 2025 | danperry.substack.com | Chris Stephen |Dan Perry

The US Treasury has sanctioned the troubled chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, in the first move against the court by the Trump administration (and as foreseen on these pages two months ago). Khan is now banned from the United States, and any assets and bank accounts he owns there will be frozen, after Trump complained about the court’s warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant.
The Italian Job: How to Dodge Justice and Fly Home in Style

Jan 23, 2025 | danperry.substack.com | Chris Stephen |Dan Perry

By Chris StephenThe International Criminal Court has suffered a new blow to its authority after Italy released a key Libyan suspect in defiance of the court’s wishes. Libyan police general Osama Njeem was accused by the ICC of murder, torture and sexual violence as alleged boss of a detention center in the capital Tripoli. His arrest and release have been dramatic, verging on bizarre. Njeem had been in the court’s crosshairs for a while.
Plan of Action to Secure Ukraine: Key Recommendations for the US Congress

Jan 16, 2025 | cepa.org | Catherine Sendak |Ilya Timtchenko |Chris Stephen |Edward Lucas

Reauthorize, extend, and increase funds to USAI and other authorities: The USAI train-and-equip authority should be extended for a five-year period, covering Fiscal Years 2026 through 2031 which will enable consistent planning as the current annual/semi-annual reauthorization process can create unnecessary delays in execution.
Turkey Provides Happy Hunting Ground for Russia

Jan 13, 2025 | cepa.org | Andrei Soldatov |Irina Borogan |Aura Sabadus |Chris Stephen

Turkey may object to the Kremlin’s behavior in Syria, and other places like Libya, but there remain several areas where two countries seem to be in near-perfect lockstep — the most important being Russia’s war in Ukraine. The Russian House, a branch of Rossotrudnichestvo, a main tool of the Russian soft power effort abroad, operates with complete freedom in Turkey. And it uses that liberty to openly promote the war in Ukraine.
Turkey Provides Happy Hunting Ground for Russia

Jan 13, 2025 | cepa.org | Andrei Soldatov |Irina Borogan |Aura Sabadus |Chris Stephen

Turkey may object to the Kremlin’s behavior in Syria, and other places like Libya, but there remain several areas where two countries seem to be in near-perfect lockstep — the most important being Russia’s war in Ukraine. The Russian House, a branch of Rossotrudnichestvo, a main tool of the Russian soft power effort abroad, operates with complete freedom in Turkey. And it uses that liberty to openly promote the war in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Azov Brigade Stops the Rot in the East

Jan 9, 2025 | cepa.org | David Kirichenko |Dorka Takacsy |Chris Stephen |Walter C. Clemens

Beneath the rubble of a destroyed building near the frontlines, commanders from the 12th Special Forces Azov Brigade discuss the ongoing battle for Niu-York. What stands out immediately is the striking youth of the soldiers and commanders, many of whom are in their early 20s. Niu-York, a critical frontline town located just south of Toretsk, became a focal point of Russia’s offensive in Donetsk Oblast during the summer of 2024 and nearly fell.
Orbán’s Key Minister Hit by US Magnitsky Sanctions

Jan 9, 2025 | cepa.org | Dorka Takacsy |Joshua Stein |Irina Arabidze |Chris Stephen

Antal Rogán, the minister heading Viktor Orbán’s Cabinet Office, was sanctioned by the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), under the Global Magnitsky Act, for schemes designed to enrich “himself and his party at the expense of the Hungarian people.” The decision to impose Magnitsky measures against a serving senior minister in a NATO ally’s government is unprecedented. The decision could be reversed by the next administration, but that will not be easy.
Putin’s Empire-Building Base Hunt Reaches Libya

Jan 9, 2025 | cepa.org | Chris Stephen |Walter C. Clemens |David Kagan |Francis Harris

Vladimir Putin’s search for new military bases in the Mediterranean has ended in Libya, a country as factional and complicated as Syria, from which Russian forces have effectively been expelled. Without ports and airports to supply it, Russia’s imperial mission in Africa may become as ill-fated as its failed intervention in Syria. The Kremlin has installed mercenaries in a growing number of mineral-rich countries deep within the African continent. But supplying those units is far from easy.

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Chris Stephen @reportingLibya

15 May 25

#warcrimes Trump's sanctions on International Criminal Court are starting to bite. Chief prosecutor has bank account frozen and email blocked. American court officials fear arrest if they return home. (AP) https://t.co/zUVctojXib

Chris Stephen @reportingLibya

15 May 25

#Libya Detail on a third day of fighting in the Libyan capital Tripoli. (AFP) https://t.co/uGRTrV2qHt

Chris Stephen @reportingLibya

14 May 25

#Libya Anti-government protests underway tonight in Tripoli, after two previous nights of militia battles.

Mohammed Ali @M_abdusa

محتجون يضرمون النار في مدرعات أمام مقر جهاز دعم الاستقرار سابقاً المسمى "الصفر" في أم درمان بأبوسليم، وذلك بالتزامن مع توسع الاحتجاجات الشعبية وتوافد المواطنين في ميدان الشهداء ورصد تقارير تفيد بتفرقيهم بإطلاق الرصاص. https://t.co/lFXbq1GtcI