Russia has reacted strongly to the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin on suspicion of war crimes in Ukraine. Photo/REUTERS
As well as addressing Putin, the arrest warrant from the ICC is also addressed to the Russian President’s Office of Child Rights Commissioner Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova on charges of the illegal transfer of Ukrainian children.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the arrest warrant issued by the ICC in The Hague on Friday was null and void and had no legal weight.
“The decision of the International Criminal Court has no significance for our country, including from a legal point of view,” Zakharova wrote in posting Telegram on Friday night, as quoted SputnikSaturday (18/3/2023).
“Russia is not a party to the ICC’s Rome Statute and bears no obligations under it. Russia is not involved in any cooperation with this body, and any possible ‘recipe’ for arrest coming from a court would be legally null and void for us,” Zakharova added.
Senator Andrei Klishas, Chairman of the Russian Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Development, echoed Zakharova’s sentiments, saying the ICC warrant has no legal basis or effect in Russia.
“Urges Russia to immediately issue arrest warrants against all ICC judges,” he said.
“Currently the jurisdiction of the ICC is not only recognized by Russia, but also by a number of members of the UN Security Council. After making an unreasonable decision, the ICC has embarked on a path of self-destruction,” Klishas said.
Previously, the ICC issued arrest warrants against Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova on suspicion of their responsibility in connection with the war crime of the illegal transfer of children from the occupied territories in Ukraine to the Russian Federation from February 2022 onwards.
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