Russian President Vladimir Putin is visiting Mongolia next Tuesday. The Kremlin is unconcerned by fears that he may be arrested in Mongolia, a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
However, the ICC has an arrest warrant against Putin.
This is Putin’s first visit to an ICC country since the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Putin in March 2023 on charges of illegally removing Ukrainian children from the country.
Meanwhile, following Ukraine’s call to Mongolia to arrest Putin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, ‘There is nothing to worry about. We had a wonderful discussion with our Mongolian friends.’
“All aspects of the visit have been carefully prepared,” Peskov said when asked if there had been discussions with Ulaanbaatar about the arrest warrant ahead of Putin’s visit.
Meanwhile, calling on Mongolia to arrest Putin, Ukraine said that they hope that Mongolia is aware that Putin is a war criminal. In addition, Ukraine has demanded the handover of Putin to the consuls at the ICC headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands.
However, the ICC spokesman. Fadi El-Abdullah told the BBC, “As a member state, Mongolian officials are responsible for complying with the provisions of the ICC. But it does not necessarily mean that the accused has to be arrested.’
He also said, “Of course, all preparations have been made carefully around Putin’s visit.”
Note that in February 2022, Russia launched an operation in Ukraine. The war is still going on. In the meantime, the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Putin in March 2023 on charges of illegally removing Ukrainian children from the country. Meanwhile, Mongolia signed the ICC in December 2000.
Putin is visiting Ulaanbaatar to mark the 85th anniversary of the war between Japanese, Soviet Union and Mongolian forces during the Japanese occupation of Manchuria.