The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague is due to make a preliminary ruling on jurisdiction in a case filed by Ukraine against Russia on Friday.

The highest court of the United Nations is expected to decide whether it is authorized to open main proceedings in this case.

Ukraine sued its neighbour shortly after the full-scale Russian invasion in the spring of 2022, citing the Genocide Convention. 

Kyiv accuses Moscow of abusing this convention.

Russia had initially justified the invasion of Ukraine by claiming that genocide against Russians in Ukraine had to be prevented. 

With this false accusation, Ukraine argues, Russia is violating the convention.

Russia firmly rejected the accusations and requested that the case be dismissed.

While Ukraine is supported in its action before the UN court by 32 Western allies.

Only on Wednesday, the same court had largely dismissed another case brought by Ukraine against Russia in 2017 and acquitted Russia of the accusation of financing terrorism in eastern Ukraine.

Decisions by the ICJ are binding, but the court has no means of enforcing them. 

(dpa/NAN)