02:51Germany: 'War criminals must be held accountable' - Govt spox on Putin’s ICC arrest warrant
German government spokesperson Wolfgang Buchner stated that ‘nobody is above law and order’ while discussing the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a press briefing in Berlin on Friday.
"Nobody is above law and order. This is a very important principle of international law,” the spokesperson told journalists. “War criminals must be held accountable in court; they must not feel safe anywhere, and the same goes for the Russian president."
Christian Wagner, Foreign Ministry spokesperson later referred to a report by the Human Rights Council's investigative commission, claiming it provided evidence that 'war crimes' were being committed in Ukraine.
“There is very clear evidence that Russian soldiers are committing war crimes in Ukraine and that these crimes are not going unpunished allowed and therefore the criminal investigation must run," he said.
The ICC issued arrest warrants against Putin and the Russian president's Children's Rights Commissioner, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, on Friday.
The warrants claim Putin and Lvova-Belova are allegedly responsible for a 'war crime' related to the illegal deportation of the population, including children, from the disputed territories of Ukraine to the territory of the Russian Federation.
Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitri Peskov argued the ICC's decision was 'outrageous and unacceptable,' while Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called the ICC's warrant for the Russian President 'null and void' due to Russia not being a party to the Rome statute.
The children's rights commissioner, Lvova-Belova, said that it was 'great that the international community appreciated the work to help our country's children'.
In a statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the ICC decision 'historic' and added that the head of the 'terrorist state' and the commissioner had 'officially become suspects in a war crime'.
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 2022 conflict. Moscow stated that some had been evacuated from the conflict zone, and regards those territories as its own, following referenda held last year - which Ukraine dismissed as annexation.
02:51German government spokesperson Wolfgang Buchner stated that ‘nobody is above law and order’ while discussing the International Criminal Court’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a press briefing in Berlin on Friday.
"Nobody is above law and order. This is a very important principle of international law,” the spokesperson told journalists. “War criminals must be held accountable in court; they must not feel safe anywhere, and the same goes for the Russian president."
Christian Wagner, Foreign Ministry spokesperson later referred to a report by the Human Rights Council's investigative commission, claiming it provided evidence that 'war crimes' were being committed in Ukraine.
“There is very clear evidence that Russian soldiers are committing war crimes in Ukraine and that these crimes are not going unpunished allowed and therefore the criminal investigation must run," he said.
The ICC issued arrest warrants against Putin and the Russian president's Children's Rights Commissioner, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, on Friday.
The warrants claim Putin and Lvova-Belova are allegedly responsible for a 'war crime' related to the illegal deportation of the population, including children, from the disputed territories of Ukraine to the territory of the Russian Federation.
Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitri Peskov argued the ICC's decision was 'outrageous and unacceptable,' while Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova called the ICC's warrant for the Russian President 'null and void' due to Russia not being a party to the Rome statute.
The children's rights commissioner, Lvova-Belova, said that it was 'great that the international community appreciated the work to help our country's children'.
In a statement, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the ICC decision 'historic' and added that the head of the 'terrorist state' and the commissioner had 'officially become suspects in a war crime'.
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 2022 conflict. Moscow stated that some had been evacuated from the conflict zone, and regards those territories as its own, following referenda held last year - which Ukraine dismissed as annexation.