01:44Netherlands: International Criminal Court issues arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin
President of the International Criminal Court, Piotr Hofmanski, announced that judges had decided to issue arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, during a video statement on Friday.
"The International Criminal Court has issued two warrants of arrest in the Ukraine situation," he said. "For the alleged war crimes of deportation of children from Ukrainian occupied territories into the Russian Federation."
"The contents of the warrants are secret in order to protect victims," the Polish head judge continued. "Nevertheless, the judges of the chamber deemed, with this case, decided to make the existence of the warrants public in the interests of justice and to prevent the commission of future crimes."
In response, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova pointed out that the country was "not a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and bears no obligations under it".
"Russia does not co-operate with this institution, and any possible 'prescriptions' for arrest coming from the International Court would be legally invalid for us," she added.
Hofmanski admitted in his statement that it was up to international organisations to enforce the court’s decision, while the institution does not have an attached law enforcement agency.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov stated the Russia, 'like a number of states, does not recognise the jurisdiction of this court' and that any decisions made were 'insignificant' from the point of view of Moscow.
Lvova-Belova herself said that it was 'great that the international community appreciated the work to help the children of our country'.
Meanwhile, advisor to the Ukrainian president, Mykhailo Podolyak stated that the 'world changed' with the decision, while the country’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that "international criminals will be held accountable for stealing children and other international crimes”.
Ukraine is also not a member of the ICC although has granted the organisation jurisdiction within its territory.
Kiev and its allies have claimed that thousands of children have been removed from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics to Russia since the start of the conflict. Moscow stated that some had been evacuated from the conflict zone for their safety, and regards those territories as its own, following referenda held last year - which Ukraine dismissed as annexation.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
01:44Mandatory Credit: International Criminal Court
President of the International Criminal Court, Piotr Hofmanski, announced that judges had decided to issue arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, during a video statement on Friday.
"The International Criminal Court has issued two warrants of arrest in the Ukraine situation," he said. "For the alleged war crimes of deportation of children from Ukrainian occupied territories into the Russian Federation."
"The contents of the warrants are secret in order to protect victims," the Polish head judge continued. "Nevertheless, the judges of the chamber deemed, with this case, decided to make the existence of the warrants public in the interests of justice and to prevent the commission of future crimes."
In response, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova pointed out that the country was "not a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and bears no obligations under it".
"Russia does not co-operate with this institution, and any possible 'prescriptions' for arrest coming from the International Court would be legally invalid for us," she added.
Hofmanski admitted in his statement that it was up to international organisations to enforce the court’s decision, while the institution does not have an attached law enforcement agency.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov stated the Russia, 'like a number of states, does not recognise the jurisdiction of this court' and that any decisions made were 'insignificant' from the point of view of Moscow.
Lvova-Belova herself said that it was 'great that the international community appreciated the work to help the children of our country'.
Meanwhile, advisor to the Ukrainian president, Mykhailo Podolyak stated that the 'world changed' with the decision, while the country’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that "international criminals will be held accountable for stealing children and other international crimes”.
Ukraine is also not a member of the ICC although has granted the organisation jurisdiction within its territory.
Kiev and its allies have claimed that thousands of children have been removed from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics to Russia since the start of the conflict. Moscow stated that some had been evacuated from the conflict zone for their safety, and regards those territories as its own, following referenda held last year - which Ukraine dismissed as annexation.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.