A pitch to create an international tribunal for Ukraine by the Council of Europe may be at peril over budget concerns. European donors believe the US will continue to disengage from supporting Kyiv under Trump, which complicates fundraising for the Europeans to cover the expenses.
The creation of a special tribunal set up to try crimes of aggression against Ukraine is encountering budgetary difficulties, multiple sources familiar with the matter told Euronews, highlighting the challenges for European nations to keep up their financial engagements without the backing of the United States
The special tribunal was bilaterally agreed by the Council of Europe and the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in June and will require funding from multiple partners to effectively go ahead.
European donors now worry that the US will continue its policy of disengagement from multilateral institutions, complicating their fundraising efforts.
Although the Council of Europe is officially composed of 46 members, any country that wishes to can take part of the Special Tribunal.
Euronews asked US authorities whether the Trump administration would be interested in joining, without receiving a reply at the time of publication.
