American University Washington College of Law Professor and Dean Emeritus Claudio Grossman spoke on a panel at the European Parliament headquarters in Brussels addressing the human rights situation in Ukraine since the 2022 invasion led by Russia. The event also examined the role of Latin America and Europe in supporting Ukrainians through more than four years of armed conflict that has left almost 2 million people killed or wounded, according to estimates from Le Monde and the UN Human Rights Office.

The panel was organized by ¡Aguanta Ucrania!, a Latin American solidarity campaign, with support from the European Parliament. The conference was held in memory of Victoria Amelina, a Ukrainian novelist and war crimes researcher who died after being injured in a Russian attack on Kramatorsk.

Grossman, who also serves as Academy on Human Rights Co-Chair, joined a panel that included Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament; Javi López Fernández, Vice President and Member of the European Parliament; Oleksandra Matviichuk, 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and head of the Center for Civil Liberties; and Sergio Jaramillo, former High Commissioner for Peace of Colombia.

Grossman emphasized that the war against Ukraine violates fundamental principles of international law, including the prohibition on the use of force, human rights, the rule of law, democracy, and self-determination, making it an attack not just on one country, but on international law itself. Drawing a connection to Latin America's own history of defending self-determination, he noted the region's unconditional support for Ukraine as the victim of aggression, and pointed to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as legally binding even in wartime.

Metsola called for continued pressure on Russia, resistance to the normalization of unilateral aggression, and stronger democratic dialogue between Europe and Latin America. Jaramillo argued that nearly 40 percent of recorded civilian deaths have occurred far from the front lines, calling the pattern deliberate targeting of civilians; he also recalled being with Amelina when she was fatally injured. Matviichuk warned that ongoing peace talks have coincided with some of the deadliest periods of the war, and that the conflict's human toll — displaced children, abducted civilians, and mistreated prisoners of war — is being overshadowed by economic negotiations. López Fernández urged greater recognition of Latin America's role in defending multilateralism and called for consistency in how Europe responds to conflicts worldwide.

The AUWCL and the Academy on Human Rights community hope to continue contributing to academic discussion on human rights and international law worldwide.

You can watch the recording of the panel and its highlights here.