Readout of U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland’s Meeting with Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin

On March 7, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland welcomed to the Justice Department Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin (PG Kostin), Ambassador Oksana Markarova of Ukraine to the United States, and Director Yurii Belousov of the Prosecutor General’s Department for Countering Crimes Committed in Conditions of Armed Conflict. On March 6 and 7, PG Kostin and Director Belousov also met with numerous Justice Department officials in Washington, D.C.

AG Garland expressed the Department’s continued support and commitment to working with Ukraine on all fronts and across numerous areas. He highlighted the Department’s work holding Russia accountable for war crimes, through the work of the Justice Department’s War Crimes Accountability Team (WarCAT) as well as the Department’s participation in the International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression in The Hague (ICPA). He also noted the Department’s ongoing work to seize illicit Russian assets for the benefit of the people of Ukraine, to prosecute those who facilitate the evasion of sanctions imposed on Russia, and to fight back against the export of sensitive technologies through Task Force KleptoCapture (TFKC) and the Disruptive Technology Strike Force (DTSF).

During the meeting, AG Garland reiterated the Department’s commitment to working closely with Ukraine to secure their democratic future through the prosecution of high-level corruption and highlighted recent successes including the December war crimes indictment charging four Russia-affiliated military personnel and recent cases brought by TFKC and the DTSF. AG Garland and PG Kostin also discussed the impact of relationships developed across the Department including with the Environment and Natural Resources Division, the FBI’s Art Crime Team, and the Office for Access to Justice (ATJ).

On March 6, PG Kostin met with Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew G. Olsen to discuss cooperation in identifying and prosecuting illicit actors and how to build upon the relationship between the Ukrainian government and the DTSF, including opportunities for engaging with partners in Europe and the United Kingdom on preventing the export of sensitive dual-use technologies to Russia and to other foreign adversaries for malign purposes.

On March 7, PG Kostin also met with Deputy Assistant Attorney General and Counselor for International Affairs Bruce C. Swartz, WarCat, TFKC, the Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT), Resident Legal Advisor at U.S. Embassy Kyiv Jared Kimball, the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP), Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section, ATJ, and the Office of International Affairs (OIA). In addition, PG Kostin met with victim witness support experts of the Office of Victims of Crime, Office on Violence Against Women, Office of Justice for Victims of Overseas Terrorism, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

The meetings were a follow-up to the meetings in September 2023 to discuss progress made and priorities moving forward including investigating and prosecuting war crimes of torture and sexual violence and providing support and resources to victims and witnesses of these horrific crimes. They discussed increased efforts to provide guidance, case-based mentoring, expertise, and capacity building to Ukrainian prosecutors and investigators on investigating war-related cyber-attacks to critical infrastructure and environmental crimes, as well as the theft and smuggling of cultural property and protecting cultural heritage.

It also was an opportunity to demonstrate the United States’ unwavering support and confidence in the Prosecutor General’s Office’s critical work and understand the current challenges they are facing and how the Department can help.

The Justice Department is proud to stand by our Ukrainian law enforcement partners in their courageous and crucial work and looks forward to continued collaboration and partnership.