The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over allegations of abductions of Ukrainian children during the ongoing conflict between the two countries. The move comes after years of tensions between Moscow and Kyiv and could escalate the already strained relations between the two nations. The allegations have been strongly denied by the Kremlin, which has accused Ukraine of fabricating the charges to tarnish the Russian leader’s reputation. The warrant is part of a wider investigation into human rights abuses committed during the conflict, which began in 2014 after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes related to the alleged abduction of children from Ukraine. The move represents the first time the ICC has issued a warrant against a leader of one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, and is unlikely to result in a trial unless the international community cooperates in enforcing the warrant.
In addition to Putin, the court has also issued a warrant for Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, the Commissioner for Children’s Rights in the Office of the President of the Russian Federation. Both Putin and Lvova-Belova are alleged to have been responsible for the “unlawful deportation” and “unlawful transfer” of population (namely, children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation.
While the ICC lacks its own police force to enforce the warrants, the court’s president has noted that the onus is now on the international community to take appropriate actions. Moscow currently does not recognise the ICC’s jurisdiction, and Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has reaffirmed the country’s position that the ICC’s decisions are legally void.
However, Ukrainian officials have hailed the move as a “historic decision”, with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stating that the “wheels of justice are turning” and that “international criminals will be held accountable for stealing children and other international crimes”. Although Ukraine is not a member of the ICC, it has granted the court jurisdiction over its territory, while prosecutor Karim Khan has visited the country four times since opening an investigation into such crimes a year ago.
Data from Ukraine’s National Information Bureau suggests that 16,226 children were deported from the country, with only 308 managed to be brought back by Ukraine. Although Russia has rejected the allegations against Putin and Lvova-Belova as null and void, human rights groups have praised the ICC’s move as a first step towards ending impunity for such crimes.
Balkees Jarrah, associate international justice director at Human Rights Watch, stated that “The ICC has made Putin a wanted man and taken its first step to end the impunity that has emboldened perpetrators in Russia’s war against Ukraine for far too long,” while Professor David Crane noted that “dictators and tyrants around the world are now on notice that those who commit international crimes will be held accountable to include heads of state”.
Crane was responsible for indicting Liberian President Charles Taylor for crimes in Sierra Leone 20 years ago. Taylor was eventually detained and tried at a special court in the Netherlands, where he was convicted and sentenced to 50 years in jail. For Putin, however, a trial remains a distant prospect given Russia’s refusal to recognise the ICC’s jurisdiction.
In a separate development, a UN-backed inquiry cited Russian attacks against Ukrainian civilians, including systematic torture and killing in occupied regions, as potential war crimes and crimes against humanity. The investigation found further crimes committed against Ukrainians on Russian territory, including the prevention of deported Ukrainian children from reuniting with their families, and a “filtration” system aimed at detaining and torturing Ukrainian nationals.
