Vladimir Putin will be “held responsible” for war crimes in Ukraine at the international criminal court in The Hague, the health secretary, Sajid Javid, has pledged, saying the UK would help gather the necessary evidence.
The justice secretary, Dominic Raab, was travelling to The Hague on Monday to help make sure that “when that prosecution comes, the court will have what it needs,” Javid told BBC One’s Breakfast programme.
Javid was asked for his response to the news that a pregnant woman shown in a much-used photograph being stretchered out of a bombed maternity hospital in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol had reportedly since died, as had her baby.
“It fills me with rage to see something like that. These are appalling atrocities committed on innocent civilians in Ukraine by the Russians,” Javid said, saying the World Health Organization had documented 31 attacks so far on health facilities.
“These are war crimes and Putin will be held responsible,” he added. Asked how, Javid said: “He will be ultimately held responsible for sure by the international court. Today, the justice secretary, my colleague, is going to The Hague and he’ll be meeting there with the chief prosecutor and others, offering UK support to gather evidence.”
Asked about potential Nato support for Ukraine, Javid stressed that the alliance was a “defensive organisation,” but warned of consequences for Russia if Nato nations were targeted, after strikes close to the Polish border.
“If a single Russia toecap steps into Nato territory it will be considered an act of war,” Javid said.
Overnight, Javid’s department announced that 21 Ukrainian children who have cancer had arrived in England with immediate family members to have NHS treatment.
“They will now be cared for here in the UK for as long as is needed,” Javid said. “To do this it was quite an operation over the weekend. A number of partners were involved, and I’m very grateful to them, especially the Polish government and the NHS. And I’m pleased that we can provide support in this way.”
Asked if more such patients would come, Javid said the UK was “working with international partners,” and that another aspect was to support Poland and Moldova.
The government is expected to announce details of a scheme later on Monday by which Britons can host Ukrainian refugees arriving in the UK in their homes for six months.
Asked about concerns raised from some refugees about the ability to carry out enough checks in the time provided, Javid said: “This is an unprecedented situation, and I think that it’s important to listen to charities that have experience, and help work out how this can work.
“But I don’t think the fact we haven’t done this before should be some kind of block on not trying to do this in this way at this point. I think it is very valuable for a Ukrainian refugee arriving in the UK to have a British host to help them in so many ways, not least to integrate into British life.”
Asked if he would consider hosting a refugee, Javid said he was “starting to have a conversation with my wife about that,” but did not commit to doing so.
