Vladimir Putin arrived on an official visit to Mongolia, the first country since 2023 to sign the Rome Statute and recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, which issued an arrest warrant for the Russian president on suspicion of war crimes during the invasion of Ukraine.
On Monday evening, Putin's plane landed in the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar, where he was met by an honor guard, past whom he walked on a red carpet.
The Russian leader is visiting Mongolia at the invitation of the country's president, Uhnagin Hurelsukh, who, as TASS reports, made such a proposal during a meeting in Beijing in the fall of 2023.
Shortly after Putin's arrival in Ulaanbaatar, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgy Tikhoi condemned the Mongolian authorities' decision not to arrest the Russian president on the orders of the ICC.
The Hague-based court accuses Putin of being responsible for the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia during the war.
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"The Mongolian government's failure to comply with the ICC's mandatory arrest warrant for Putin is a heavy blow to the International Criminal Court and the international criminal justice system," said a spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.
"Mongolia allowed an accused criminal to escape justice, thereby sharing responsibility for war crimes. We will work with partners so that Ulaanbaatar bears the consequences," it added
On Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov again said that Moscow is not afraid of Putin's arrest in Mongolia on the orders of the ICC.
"There is no such problem with Mongolia," said Peskov, as reported by TASS.
What did the International Criminal Court say?
Late last week, ICC spokesman Dr. Fadi El-Abdallah told the BBC that the court's member states "have an obligation to cooperate in accordance with the Rome Statute."
There is a clause in the agreement that member states can be released from obligations if their execution would cause them to "violate an already existing contractual obligation" towards another state or to violate the diplomatic immunity of representatives or property of a third country.
The ICC spokesman explained that cases of "non-cooperation" by signatory states will be thoroughly investigated, after which the assembly, which is made up of all signatory states, could "take any measures it deems necessary [against violators]."
The ICC does not have its own law enforcement agency.
Suspects are arrested by member countries on their territory, which requires the appropriate will of the authorities of these countries.
Last year, Putin did not go to the Republic of South Africa, also a signatory to the Rome Statute, where he was invited to the summit BRICS.
It was reported that the South African president specifically asked him to do so.
Putin has traveled abroad less often since the war in Ukraine began, and all the countries he has visited since the arrest warrant was issued do not recognize the ICC's jurisdiction.
Mongolia recognized the jurisdiction of the ICC in 2002.
Mongolia has a reputation as a democratic country.
The Freedom House organization classifies it as a free country, while Russia is not.
Earlier, Ukrainian authorities called on Mongolia to arrest Putin during his visit and hand him over to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Peskov said that the Kremlin is not worried about the visit and that all its details have been "carefully prepared".
Why did Putin go to Mongolia?
Putin will participate in the celebration of the 85th anniversary of the victory of Soviet troops over Japan in 1939 in the battle of Halkin Gol in Mongolia.
The presidents of Russia and Mongolia will lay flowers at the monument to Marshal Georgy Zhukov, who commanded Soviet and Mongolian troops during the Battle of Halkin Gol.
The Russian president last visited the country five years ago, and then he attended the ceremonies marking the anniversary of the battle at Halkhin Gol.
Putin will also meet with the president of Mongolia, and representatives of the governments of the two countries will sign several bilateral documents, TASS reports.
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