International Criminal Court joins team probing alleged war crimes in Ukraine

The International Criminal Court (ICC) will take part in the joint team investigating allegations of war crimes in Ukraine following the Russian invasion, the European Union's agency for criminal justice cooperation said on Monday.

ICC prosecutor Karim Khan and the Prosecutors General from Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine signed an agreement for the international war crimes tribunal's first-ever participation in an investigative team, Eurojust said.

"With this agreement, parties are sending a clear message that all efforts will be undertaken to effectively gather evidence on core international crimes committed in Ukraine and bring those responsible to justice," the Eurojust agency said in a statement.

Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine signed an agreement last month to set up a team to enable the exchange of information and investigation into suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Khan early last month opened an investigation into possible war crimes committed in Ukraine, following requests to do so by an unprecedented number of the court's member states.