Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has praised the ICC’s decision to issue an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin. This warrant has been issued in the cases of war crimes in Ukraine and Russia’s kidnapping of Ukrainian children. The court has said that Putin is responsible for the inhuman incidents in Ukraine. Zelensky referred to this decision as a “historic” one.
Ukrainian President called the verdict historic
Zelensky said on social media, ‘This is a historical decision, from which historical responsibility will begin.’ Earlier, after the warrant was issued against Putin, Zelensky had said that this was just the beginning.
#WATCH | The International Criminal Court issued two arrest warrants for the Russian Pres. Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, Commissioner for Children’s Rights, for alleged war crimes of deportation of children from Ukrainian-occupied territories into Russia: Poitr Hofmanski, ICC Pres pic.twitter.com/rCSN5B7mAY
— ANI (@ANI) March 17, 2023
There is no legal basis for this decision: Maria Zakharova
The court has also issued a warrant against Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Alekseevna, in the child abduction case. While Russia has condemned this decision of the International Court of Justice, Ukraine has welcomed it. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has said that the decision of the International Court of Justice has no meaning for our country. This decision has neither any legal basis nor validity.
Many countries welcomed this decision
On the other hand, many other countries, including America, Canada, Poland, and the Czech Republic, have also welcomed the decision of the International Court of Justice. Putin is the third president in the world to have a warrant issued for his arrest while in office.
Prior to that, the International Court of Justice had issued arrest warrants for Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir and Libya’s President Muammar Gaddafi. The issuance of this warrant means that now if Putin travels to any country that recognizes the court, he can be arrested there. He can be produced before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.