The Kremlin Criticizes Armenia's Decision to Join International Criminal Court: Latest News and Updates

Tuesday, 03/10/2023 21:30 WIB

Photo: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Tajikistan President Emomali Rakhmon enter the hall before the meeting of the leaders of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) countries. member states at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Monday, May 16, 2022. (Alexander Nemenov/Pool Photo via AP)

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The Kremlin criticized the Armenian parliament’s decision to join the International Criminal Court, which has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We doubt that from the point of view of bilateral relations, Armenia’s entry into the Rome Statute was correct. We are still convinced that it was the wrong decision,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Tuesday (3/10/2023), as reported AFP.

Armenian lawmakers on Tuesday morning approved a landmark move to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is expected to escalate tensions with the ex-Soviet country’s historic ally Moscow.

Russia has warned Armenia against voting to ratify the ICC’s founding treaty, after the international court in March issued an arrest warrant against Putin over the war in Ukraine and the illegal deportation of children to Russia.

ICC members are expected to make arrests if the Russian leader sets foot on their territory.

The vote illustrates the growing gap between Moscow and Yerevan, which has grown increasingly angry with the Kremlin for its perceived inaction over Armenia’s long-standing confrontation with Azerbaijan.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has suggested that his country look elsewhere for alliances.

However, the Kremlin on Tuesday reiterated that Armenia has no alternative to the Moscow-led security alliance known as the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

“I think most people in Armenia realize that the CSTO instrument is truly irreplaceable,” Peskov said. “The Armenian side does not have a better mechanism than this one, we are sure of that.”

Watch the video below: