Russia did not ignore the words of the Minister of Justice of Germany, Marco Buschmann, about the intention to fulfill demand of the International Criminal Court(ICC) on the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the event of his appearance in Germany. The chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia, Alexander Bastrykin, on Sunday, March 19, instructed to give a legal assessment of the statements of the German minister, the department said, calling the demand of the court in The Hague “illegal”.
Russian Ambassador to Germany Sergei Nechaev expressed concern about the statement of the Minister of Justice of Germany. “The irresponsible statements of some German officials <...> cause extreme concern and testify to how far they are from reality in their desire to further escalate the conflict with Russia,” Nechaev was quoted as saying on the Embassy’s Telegram channel on Sunday, March 19.
German justice minister vows to arrest Putin
On 17 March, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, whose jurisdiction Moscow does not recognize, issued an arrest warrant for Russian leader Vladimir Putin in connection with the deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia during the war in Ukraine. Another arrest warrant was issued against Russian presidential commissioner for children’s rights Maria Lvova-Belova on the same charges.
The Minister of Justice of Germany, Bushman, promised that he would fulfill the demand of the ICC to arrest Putin if he ended up in Germany. “I expect the ICC to quickly turn to Interpol, as well as to the participating states, and ask them to execute the arrest warrant. Germany will be obliged to detain Putin if he enters its territory and hand him over to the ICC,” the minister said in an interview. weekly Bild am Sonntag. As the publication notes, all countries subject to its jurisdiction, including Germany, are required to act in accordance with the ICC ruling.
ICC Chamber Decision
Vladimir Putin is allegedly responsible for the illegal deportation and transfer of children from the occupied regions of Ukraine to Russia, the website of the International Criminal Court said. The crimes could have been happening since at least February 24, 2022. The warrant was issued by the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber.
There are “sufficient grounds to believe” that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for committing crimes directly, jointly with others and/or through other persons. It is assumed that the President of Russia also did not exercise proper control over the civilian and military subordinates who committed these acts or allowed them to be committed.
See also:
