Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn’t seem to care about the International Criminal Court’s move to issue a warrant for his arrest. Instead, Putin suddenly left Moscow and appeared in Ukraine.
Reuters reported that Putin appeared in Mariupol, the territory of Ukraine controlled by Russia, on Saturday (18/3/2023) local time. This is Putin’s first visit to the region since the Russian-Ukrainian war broke out.
Putin stopped by Mariupol after visiting Crimea to mark the 9th anniversary of Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula.
Putin’s appearance in two Ukrainian regions came after the ICC issued an arrest warrant. Putin has been accused by the ICC of war crimes for deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine.
So far, Putin has not made any comments regarding the ICC arrest warrant. However, the sudden visit to Ukraine was seen as a way for Russia to show off Putin’s defiance.
Mariupol was captured by the Resia in May last year in the longest and bloodiest battle of the Russo-Ukrainian war. Russia made its success in controlling Mariupol a sign of victory after repeatedly failing to occupy the Ukrainian capital, Kiev.
During the fighting in Mariupol, the Russians reportedly bombed a mother and child hospital. The European Organization for Security and Cooperation (OSCE) declared the bombing a war crime.
Putin arrived in Mariupol by helicopter. Then, he visited several districts of the city and chatted with local residents.
Reuters said Mariupol was the closest place to the Russian-Ukrainian frontline that Putin had visited.
Unlike Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who always tried to appear with soldiers on the front lines, Putin chose to lead from the Kremlin during the 13 months of the Russo-Ukrainian war.
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