OREANDA-NEWS  The US Defense Ministry refuses to transfer to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague materials about "possible war crimes of Russia" in the case of the actions of the Russian army in Ukraine, sources told The New York Times (NYT) and Senator Lindsey Graham. According to the newspaper, the Pentagon fears the creation of a precedent for the subsequent prosecution of the US military. Russia has repeatedly denied accusations of war crimes.

According to them, American military leaders are against helping the court in the investigation, because they are afraid of creating a precedent through which the court will be able to hold Americans accountable. At the same time, the NYT interlocutors point out that most of the presidential administration, the State Department and the US Department of Justice are in favor of transferring evidence.

The sources clarified that the evidence collected by the Americans includes details related to the investigation that the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court began immediately after the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine. In particular, the information includes data on the decisions of Russian officials.

The NYT recalls that in December, the US Congress changed the legal restrictions on American assistance to The Hague Court, allowing Washington to assist in investigations and possible prosecution related to the conflict in Ukraine. The US National Security Council held a meeting of the "main committee" in early February in an attempt to resolve the dispute, but Defense Minister Lloyd Austin and a number of military leaders opposed the transfer of data to The Hague.

Now the issue has to be resolved by President Joe Biden, who, according to sources, has not yet made a final decision.