Justice seems to have taken its time after Russia, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, invaded sovereign Ukraine and then bombed apartment buildings and hospitals. Russian soldiers looted and raped women and children. Another appalling war crime committed by Russia was the kidnapping and deportation of Ukrainian children. They flew Ukrainian children.
Via Associated press:
The International Criminal Court announced on Friday that it has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges of war crimes over his alleged involvement in child abductions in Ukraine.
The court said in a statement that Putin “would be responsible for the war crime of illegal deportation (of children) and illegal transfer (of children) from the occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation”.
He also issued an arrest warrant on Friday for Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, commissioner for children’s rights in the office of the President of the Russian Federation, on similar allegations.
This decision was immediately rejected by Moscow and welcomed by Ukraine as a major step forward. Its practical implications, however, may well be negligible.
Although the court has indicted world leaders before, it was the first time it issued a warrant against one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
The Russian Foreign Ministry responded to the arrest warrants, according to CBS, with a statement saying, “The decisions of the International Criminal Court have no significance for our country, including from a legal point of view. Russia is not a party to the Rome Statute. of the International Criminal Court and assumes no obligation under it.
Sure, Russia, but that would make Putin an international fugitive. It comes at an interesting time since former President Donald Trump defended Russia on Thursday, dismissing the country’s invasion of Ukraine saying they pose no threat. He said the Americans are the threat.
Update: