The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague said on April 19 that it would not impose measures ordering Russia to stop funding and equipping pro-Russia separatists as part of a case brought against Moscow by Ukraine.
The United Nation's highest court said it was refusing the request by Ukraine to issue a provisional measure to block what Kyiv says is Russian monetary and military support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Moscow seized control of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in March 2014 and has supported the separatists in a war that has since killed more than 9,900 people in eastern Ukraine.
When Ukraine lodged its case in January, Kyiv said Russia has stepped up its interference in Ukraine's affairs since 2014, "intervening militarily…financing acts of terrorism and violating the human rights of millions of Ukraine's citizens, including, for all too many, their right to life."
It said Ukraine was seeking "full reparations for...acts of terrorism the Russian Federation has caused, facilitated or supported," citing bombardments of residential areas and the July 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which killed all 298 passengers and crew.
It said Ukraine was seeking "full reparations for...acts of terrorism the Russian Federation has caused, facilitated or supported," citing bombardments of residential areas and the July 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which killed all 298 passengers and crew.
Ukraine is also calling on the court to stop what it says is "racial discrimination" against Crimean Tatars and ethnic Ukrainians in Crimea since its takeover of the peninsula, which followed the deployment of troops and a referendum denounced as illegitimate by Ukraine, the United States, and a total of 100 UN member countries.
Russian Denials
Ukraine's filing accused Russia of violating the Terrorism Financing Convention and an international treaty against racial discrimination.
It asked the court's 15 judges to rule that "the Russian Federation bears international responsibility" for "acts of terrorism committed by its proxies in Ukraine."
Moscow rejects the allegations. It has said the terrorism claims are "neither factual nor legal" and argued that the ICJ does not have jurisdiction over the case.
Russia has denied sending troops or military equipment to eastern Ukraine, despite what Kyiv and Western countries say is incontrovertible evidence.
As it can take months for the ICJ to even decide to hear a case, Ukraine also lodged a request for provisional protection measures.
In that interim application, Ukraine asked for an urgent court order demanding Russia refrain from "any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute" or make it more difficult to resolve, including a halt to the alleged pumping of money, weapons, equipment and personnel into the east.
The United States, European Union, and other countries have imposed sanctions on Russia in response to its interference in Ukraine, which has badly damaged Moscow's relations with both the West and Ukraine.
Although the ICJ’s rulings are final and binding, it has no means of enforcement.