Policy Engagement – Jelena Aparac

PROVIDING BRIEFINGS

I regularly provide briefings to states in bilateral and multilateral settings, including closed sessions. I also engage with various entities, organs, and senior officials of the United Nations and other international organizations on issues related to international peace and security. A significant number of these engagements are confidential and cannot be publicly disclosed.

MY STATEMENTS

UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, session organised by the UN Working Group on Business and Human Rights, “Investigation, Documentation and Accountability in Conflict Affected Areas”, Moderating the high level panel

See here for the video of the session: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1m/k1mkblcl8m

Human Rights Council, 56^th session, Side event, sponsored by the PM of Ukraine in Geneva “Russia’s Ecocide: Human Rights Implications and Accountability Measures”, Presentation on Prosecuting environmental crimes in Ukraine, June 2024

Council of Europe, Parliamentary Assembly, Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights, Hearing on Legal and human rights aspects of the Russian Federation’s aggression against Ukraine, September 2023.

Final Resolution 2556 (2024), adopted unanimously on 26 June 2024, incorporates several recommendations discussed during the process, including those reflected in paragraph 14 (in particular 14.12).

Human Rights Council, 54^th session, Side- event “War Criminals for Hire: The Role and Accountability of Mercenaries in Modern Armed Conflicts”, Expert statement on the accountability framework for the Wagner Group, September 2023.

Statement by Jelena Aparac, member of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries, for the 4^th session of the Open-ended intergovernmental working group to elaborate the content of an international regulatory framework, without prejudging the nature thereof, relating to the activities of private military and security companies, April 2023

Remarks by Jelena Aparac, member of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries, Geneva Academy: IHL Talks, 9 June 2022

Jelena Aparac, Statement of the Chair of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries to the 48^th session of the Human Rights Council, 21 September 2021

See video of the session here: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1l/k1l3z5fkzd

Jelena Aparac, Statement of the Chair of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries to the 76^th session of the United Nations General Assembly, 28 October 2021

Statement by Jelena Aparac, member of the Working Group on the use of mercenaries, for the 2^nd session of the Open-ended intergovernmental working group to elaborate the content of an international regulatory framework, without prejudging the nature thereof, relating to the activities of private military and security companies, April 2021

OHCHR Expert Consultation on deprivation of liberty in detention facilities located outside of the territory of States and its implications for the protection of human rights and the integrity of the justice system, Expert contribution on the role of PMSCs in secret detention and in migrant detention, OHCHR, Palais Wilson, December 2019, Geneva

UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, Panel on the Use of private military and security companies in migrant detention centers, November 2019,Expert statement, UN Palais des Nations, Geneva

Vatican, 5th International Course for The Formation of Catholic Military Chaplains to International Humanitarian Law, 70th Anniversary of the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, October 2019, Expert Statement on Detention by private military and security companies (PMSC)

Private audience with His Holiness Pope Francis

Fifth session of the open-ended intergovernmental working group on transnational corporations and other business enterprises with respect to human rights (IGWG), October 2019, Expert Statements on article 6 “Legal liability” and article 13 “Institutional arrangements” (produced in the final report of the session, invitation by the Chairperson of the IGWG)

Video of the session on the article 6 available here: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1z/k1zwvhc1fa
Video of the session on the article 13 available here: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k11/k11z2232mz

OSCE, Forum for Security Co-operation (FSC) – Swiss FSC-Chairmanship’s Security Dialogue on PMSCs, January 2020, Vienna, Expert Statement on PMSC (produced in internal document for distinguished ambassadors)

Inter-Parliamentary Union, Standing Committee on Peace and International Security, 139^th IPU Assembly: Hearing on the non-admissibility of using mercenaries as a means of undermining peace and violating human rights, October 2018, Geneva, Expert Statement on mercenaries and PMSC (produced in the final report, pp 74-79)