Volodymyr Zelensky made the statement in the Hague, the Netherlands, on Thursday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
In a speech entitled No Peace Without Justice for Ukraine, the Ukrainian leader said: "The aggressor must feel the full power of justice. This is our historical responsibility."
He added: “Only one institution is capable of responding to the original crime, the crime of aggression: a tribunal. Not some compromise that will allow politicians to say that the case is allegedly done, but a true, really true, full-fledged tribunal."
The United Nations defines an act of aggression as the "invasion or attack by the armed forces of a state (on) the territory of another state, or any military occupation," the Reuters news agency reported.
The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC), which Zelensky visited earlier in the day, in March issued an arrest warrant for Putin for suspected deportation of children from Ukraine.
However, the ICC does not have jurisdiction over alleged crimes of aggression, which has prompted the European Union’s executive Commission, among others, to declare its support for the creation of a separate international centre for the prosecution of the crime of aggression in Ukraine, according to Reuters.
'Whoever brings war must receive judgement'
Zelensky said on Thursday: “We all want to see a different Vladimir here in The Hague,” referring to Putin, the Dutch Review website reported.
He added that the Kremlin leader “deserves to be sanctioned for his criminal actions here, in the capital of international law."
Zelensky vowed: "I'm sure we will see that happen when we win, and we will win. Whoever brings war must receive judgement."
There exist major legal and practical questions regarding the legitimisation of a special war crimes tribunal, either by a group of countries supporting it or with approval from the UN General Assembly, Reuters reported.
While in the Hague, Zelensky said there was already a group of 35 countries that supported the creation of such a court, according to news outlets.
Meanwhile, Russia is not a member of the ICC, rejects its jurisdiction and denies committing war crimes during its invasion of Ukraine, which it terms a "special operation" to "demilitarise" its neighbour, according to news outlets.
In his speech on Thursday, Zelensky said Russia had committed 6,139 war crimes in Ukraine in April alone, killing 207 civilians, including 11 children, the PAP news agency reported.
He thanked the ICC for its investigation of Russia’s war crimes in his country, including the raping and killing of civilians in the town of Bucha near the capital Kyiv.
Zelensky renews call for Ukraine to be admitted to NATO
Earlier in the day, in his first official visit to the Netherlands, Zelensky visited the ICC in the Hague and addressed both houses of the Dutch parliament.
Later the Ukrainian leader held three-way talks with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Belgium's Alexander De Croo, the PAP news agency reported.
Zelensky also met with the king of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander.
Zelensky reiterated calls for Ukraine to be allowed to join NATO, saying his country wanted to receive a clear message while the war was being fought that it would be part of the military alliance after the war, according to Reuters.
The Netherlands has been a strong supporter of Ukraine, with Rutte in February saying he did not rule out any kind of military support for Kyiv as long as it did not bring NATO into conflict with Russia, Reuters also reported.
Thursday is day 435 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: PAP, Reuters, Dutch Review