Claiming Genocide to Justify Aggressive Wars: The Case of Russia's Invasion of Ukraine and Rwanda's Expansionism in the Great Lakes Region

• Citation: (2023) African Yearbook on International Humanitarian Law 20
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.47348/AYIH/2023/a2
• Published date: 17 June 2025
• Pages: 20-48
• Author: Mutabazi, E.
• Date: 17 June 2025

20

CLAIMING GENOCIDE TO JUSTIFY

AGGRESSIVE WARS: THE CASE OF

RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE

AND RWANDA’S EXPANSIONISM IN

THE GREAT LAKES REGION

Etienne Mutabazi*

Abstract

In February 2022 the Russian Fede ration launched special military operations in

Ukraine, alleging that the latter was com mitting genocide against the Ru ssian-

speaking population in the Donet sk and Luhansk regions, also known as ‘th e

Donbas’. This led Ukraine to le an application inst ituting proceedings against

the Federation at the Intern ational Court of Justice for prov isional measures

to suspend such operations. It also de nied Russia’s accusations of genocide.

In the 1990s, Rwandan exiled Tutsis launched an attack to recaptu re power

in their country, resulting in genocid e. After lengthy cour t proceedings, the

International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda determined that genocide had been

committed against the Rwandan Tutsis. Thereaf ter, and despite the Tribunal’s

thought-through decisions and judg ments, Rwanda’s President Kagame

undertook a decept ive campaign, warning of impending genoc ide in Burundi in

2015, prompting the African Union to decide to deploy t roops to prevent such

atrocities. Buru ndi denied any threat of genocide. Also, since 1996, Rwanda

has, on numerous occasion s, intervened militarily in the De mocratic Republic

of Congo to, allegedly, prevent genocide against the Banyamulenge, also of Tutsi

ethnicity. While internat ional judicial institut ions have laboured to ascer tain

the elements that const itute genocide, irrespo nsible claims of genocide continue

to capture attentio n. Based on the relevant literature that addresses this burning

issue, and some decisions and ju dgments of the United Nations ad hoc tribu nals

for Rwanda and the Former Yugoslavia, as well as those of the E xtraordinary

Chamber in the Courts of Cam bodia, this article looks be yond the claim of

genocide in the ongoing armed co nicts in the Great Lakes region and bet ween

Ukraine and the Russian Federation. T he reality is that this claim is mad e by

political leaders in a bid to ser ve their political agendas, despite legal effor ts

to clarify the legal requirement s for a crime to be characteri sed as genocide.

The article recommen ds the adoption of a supplementary convent ion that would

reemphasise the requirement s that any claims of genocide must me et to prevent

its abuse and misuse, including in political di scourses.

https://doi.org/10.47348/AYIH/2023/a2

* Dr Etienne Mutabazi, Adju nct Senior Lect urer, University of Ir inga and

Independent Consulta nt based in Johannesburg, South Af rica.

A rican Yearbook HL (2023) BOOK indb 20 2025/05/29 09 14

(2023) African Yearbook on International Humanitarian Law 20

© Juta and Company (Pty) Ltd

CLAIMING GENOCIDE TO JUSTIFY AGGRESSIVE WARS: THE CASE OF

RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE AND RWANDA’S EXPANSIONISM IN THE

GREAT LAKES REGION

https://doi.org/10.47348/AYIH/2023/a2

21

Keywor ds: Aggressive wars, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo

(DRC), Russia, Rwanda, Ukraine, Genocide Convention, Great Lakes,

intent to destroy, protected groups

1 INTRODUCTION

In February 2022 Russia launched special militar y operations in

Ukraine, to allegedly stop genocide being comm itted against the

Russian-speaking population in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

That was not the strategic reason for the invasion. Switzer1 suggests that

the operations aimed to prevent Ukraine from becoming a member of

the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Following the attack,

Ukraine led an application at the International Court of Justice (ICJ)

for provisional measures to suspend such operations. The application

was granted with a declaration that Ukraine did not breach its

obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment

of the Crime of Genocide. Reacting to the attack, Joe Biden, the

President of the United States said that the atrocities being committed

in Ukraine qualify as genocide because ‘Russian President Vladimir

Putin is just trying to wipe out even the idea of being Ukrai nian’.2

Ironically, in acknowledging Biden’s statement, Volodymir Zelensky,

the Ukrainia n President, tweeted that ‘Calling things by their na mes is

essential to stand up to evil. We are grateful for US assista nce provided

so far and we urgently need more heavy weapons to prevent further

Russian atrocities’ without using the word ‘genocide’, himself. Other

world leaders followed suit, including former United Kingdom Prime

Minister Boris Johnson, former Colombian President Ivan Duque and

former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, albeit in their own

way.3 French President Emmanuel Macron categorically distanced

himself from th is cohort, publicly refusing to use the term ‘genocide’ to

describe Russia’swar crimesin Ukraine.4Professor Schabas, a genocide

scholar, articulated that ‘destroy, in whole or in part’ dismisses claims

1 Tom Switzer ‘Why NATO expansion explai ns Russia’s action in Ukr aine?’

Australian Institute of Inter national Affairs (26 July 202 4), available at

www.internationalaffairs.org.au/australianoutlook/why-nato-expansion-

explains-r ussias-actions-in-uk raine/> ( accessed on 14 February 2025).

2 Kevin Liptak ‘Biden call s atrocities in Uk raine a genocide for the r st time’.

CNN (12 April 2022), available at ps://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/12/

politics/biden-iowa-geno cide/index.html> (accessed on 24 July 2024).

3 Danylo Mokryk ‘Say the word “genocide”’ Kyiv Independent’s War Crimes

Investigations Unit (22 March 20 24), available at ndependent.

com/danylo-mokryk-say-the -word-genocide/> (accessed on 24 July 2024).

4 Ibid.

A rican Yearbook HL (2023) BOOK indb 21 2025/05/29 09 14

© Juta and Company (Pty) Ltd