Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino says the additional group of RCMP officers being sent to help the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigate possible war crimes by Russia will be deployed 鈥渁s quickly as possible.鈥�
Mendicino told CTV News Channel鈥檚 Power Play host Evan Solomon the members are part of a highly 鈥渟pecialized鈥� team that will be up to the task of holding Russia accountable for its illegal invasion of Ukraine.
鈥淭his will be a team of dedicated experts who understand how to collect evidence which could be marshaled into a future prosecution that could be put before the International Criminal Court鈥hese individuals will be deployed as quickly as possible,鈥� he said on Tuesday.
Mendicino made the announcement about Canada鈥檚 contribution to the ICC鈥檚 ongoing investigations, following a request from the ICC鈥檚 office of the prosecutor, earlier in the day.
鈥淚n the face of Putin and the Russian military鈥檚 flagrant violation of international law, Canada will continue to work to ensure that they are held accountable for their illegal actions,鈥� a statement reads.
鈥淐anadian investigators will be assigned to teams working to end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community -- including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.鈥�
The RCMP currently has three investigators deployed to the ICC. The contingent will grow to 10 with Tuesday鈥檚 announcement.
Listen to Mendicino鈥檚 interview at the top of this article.
