The International Criminal Court said Friday that it has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes, accusing him of personal responsibility for the abductions of children from Ukraine.
It was the first time the global court has issued a warrant against a leader of one of the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.
The ICC said in a statement that Putin B次元官网网址渋s allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of (children) and that of unlawful transfer of (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation.B次元官网网址�
The move was immediately dismissed by Moscow B次元官网网址� and welcomed by Ukraine as a major breakthrough.
Its practical implications, however, could be limited as the chances of Putin facing trial at the ICC are highly unlikely because Moscow does not recognize the courtB次元官网网址檚 jurisdiction or extradite its nationals.
But the moral condemnation will likely stain the Russian leader for the rest of his life B次元官网网址� and in the more immediate future whenever he seeks to attend an international summit in a nation bound to arrest him.
B次元官网网址淪o Putin might go to China, Syria, Iran, his B次元官网网址� few allies, but he just wonB次元官网网址檛 travel to the rest of the world and wonB次元官网网址檛 travel to ICC member states who he believes would B次元官网网址� arrest him,B次元官网网址� said Adil Ahmad Haque, an expert in international law and armed conflict at Rutgers University.
Others agreed. B次元官网网址淰ladimir Putin will forever be marked as a pariah globally. He has lost all his political credibility around the world. Any world leader who stands by him will be shamed as well,B次元官网网址� David Crane, a former international prosecutor, told The Associated Press.
The court also issued a warrant for the arrest of Maria Lvova-Belova, the commissioner for ChildrenB次元官网网址檚 Rights in the Office of the President of the Russian Federation. The AP reported on her involvement in the abduction of Ukrainian orphans in October, in the first investigation to follow the process all the way to Russia, relying on dozens of interviews and documents.
ICC President Piotr Hofmanski said in a video statement that while the ICCB次元官网网址檚 judges have issued the warrants, it will be up to the international community to enforce them. The court has no police force of its own to do so.
The ICC can impose a maximum sentence of life imprisonment B次元官网网址渨hen justified by the extreme gravity of the crime,B次元官网网址� according to its founding treaty, the Rome Statute, that established it as a permanent court of last resort to prosecute political leaders and other key perpetrators of the worldB次元官网网址檚 worst atrocities B次元官网网址� war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
Still, the chances of Putin or Lvova-Belova facing trial remain extremely remote, as Moscow does not recognize the courtB次元官网网址檚 jurisdiction B次元官网网址� a position it vehemently reaffirmed Friday.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia doesnB次元官网网址檛 recognize the ICC and considers its decisions B次元官网网址渓egally void.B次元官网网址� He called the courtB次元官网网址檚 move B次元官网网址渙utrageous and unacceptable.B次元官网网址�
Peskov refused to comment when asked if Putin would avoid making trips to countries where he could be arrested on the ICCB次元官网网址檚 warrant.
UkraineB次元官网网址檚 human rights chief, Dmytro Lubinets, has said that based on data from the countryB次元官网网址檚 National Information Bureau, 16,226 children were deported. Ukraine has managed to bring back 308 children.
Lvova-Belova, who was also implicated in the warrants, reacted with dripping sarcasm. B次元官网网址淚t is great that the international community has appreciated the work to help the children of our country, that we do not leave them in war zones, that we take them out, we create good conditions for them, that we surround them with loving, caring people,B次元官网网址� she said.
Ukrainian officials were jubilant at the move.
In his nightly address to the nation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called it a B次元官网网址渉istoric decision, from which historic responsibility will begin.B次元官网网址�
Sergiy Kyslytsya, UkraineB次元官网网址檚 U.N. ambassador, recalled that on the night of RussiaB次元官网网址檚 invasion, B次元官网网址淚 said at the Security Council meeting that there is no purgatory for war criminals, they go straight to hell. Today, I would like to say that those of them who will remain alive after the military defeat of Russia will have to make a stop in The Hague on their way to hell.B次元官网网址�
In Washington, President Joe Biden called the ICCB次元官网网址檚 decision B次元官网网址渏ustified,B次元官网网址� telling reporters as he left the White House for his Delaware home that Putin B次元官网网址渃learly committed war crimes.B次元官网网址� While the US does not recognize the court either, Biden said it B次元官网网址渕akes a very strong pointB次元官网网址� to call out the Russian leaderB次元官网网址檚 actions in ordering the invasion.
Olga Lopatkina, a Ukrainian mother who struggled for months to reclaim her foster children who were deported to an institution run by Russian loyalists, welcomed news of the arrest warrant. B次元官网网址淓veryone must be punished for their crimes,B次元官网网址� she said in a message exchange with the AP.
While Ukraine is also not a member of the global court, it has granted it jurisdiction over its territory and ICC prosecutor Karim Khan has visited four times since opening an investigation a year ago.
Besides Russia and Ukraine, the United States and China are not members of the 123-member ICC.
The ICC said its pre-trial chamber found B次元官网网址渞easonable groundsB次元官网网址� that Putin B次元官网网址渂ears individual criminal responsibilityB次元官网网址� for the child abductions B次元官网网址渇or having committed the acts directly, jointly with others and/or through othersB次元官网网址� and for failing to B次元官网网址渆xercise control properly over civilian and military subordinates who committed the acts.B次元官网网址�
During a visit this month, ICC prosecutor Khan said he went to a care home for children 2 kilometers (just over a mile) from front lines in southern Ukraine.
B次元官网网址淭he drawings pinned on the wall B次元官网网址� spoke to a context of love and support that was once there,B次元官网网址� he said in a statement. B次元官网网址淏ut this home was empty, a result of alleged deportation of children from Ukraine to the Russian Federation or their unlawful transfer to other parts of the temporarily occupied territories.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淎s I noted to the United Nations Security Council last September, these alleged acts are being investigated by my office as a priority. Children cannot be treated as the spoils of war,B次元官网网址� Khan said.
And while Russia rejected the allegations and warrants, others said the ICC action will have an important impact.
B次元官网网址淭he ICC has made Putin a wanted man and taken its first step to end the impunity that has emboldened perpetrators in RussiaB次元官网网址檚 war against Ukraine for far too long,B次元官网网址� said Balkees Jarrah, associate international justice director at Human Rights Watch. B次元官网网址淭he warrants send a clear message that giving orders to commit, or tolerating, serious crimes against civilians may lead to a prison cell in The Hague.B次元官网网址�
Crane, who indicted Liberian President Charles Taylor 20 years ago for crimes in Sierra Leone, said dictators and tyrants around the world B次元官网网址渁re now on notice that those who commit international crimes will be held accountable.B次元官网网址�
Taylor was eventually detained and put on trial at a special court in the Netherlands. He was convicted and sentenced to 50 yearsB次元官网网址� imprisonment.
On Thursday, a U.N.-backed inquiry cited Russian attacks against civilians in Ukraine, including systematic torture and killing in occupied regions, among potential issues that amount to war crimes and possibly crimes against humanity.
The sweeping investigation also found crimes committed against Ukrainians on Russian territory, including deported Ukrainian children who were prevented from reuniting with their families, a B次元官网网址渇iltrationB次元官网网址� system aimed at singling out Ukrainians for detention, and torture and inhumane detention conditions.
On Friday, the ICC put the face of Putin on the child abduction allegations.
B次元官网网址斺赌斺赌�
Casert reported from Brussels. AP writers Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Ukraine Ellen Knickmeyer in Washington and Sarah El Deeb in Beirut contributed.
B次元官网网址斺赌斺赌� Follow APB次元官网网址檚 coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
By Mike Corder And Raf Casert
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
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