The arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Vladimir Putin for war crimes is “justified,” Joe Biden said Friday.
The US president, in statements to reporters at the White House, recalled that the institution was not recognized by the United States, but considered that his decision, however, sent “a very strong signal.”
The arrest warrant for the Russian head of state was issued for the war crime of “illegal deportation” of Ukrainian children during the Russian invasion.
The ICC also issued an arrest warrant on Friday for Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s presidential commissioner for children’s rights, on similar charges.
Washington “has no doubt” that Moscow is committing “war crimes” in Ukraine
The United States “has no doubt that Russia is committing war crimes and atrocities in Ukraine, and we have made it clear that those responsible will be held accountable,” Washington had already reacted a little earlier through a State Department spokesman, while which stressed that the ICC acts “independently”.
The decision was hailed on Friday by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who saw it as a “historic decision, marking the beginning of historic responsibility.”
Moscow, for its part, ruled that this arrest warrant had no legal value. “Russia, like a number of states, does not recognize the jurisdiction of this court. Therefore, from the point of view of law, the decisions of this court are null and void,” Russian President Dmitry Peskov’s spokesman said.
An “important moment in the justice process”
ICC President Piotr Hofmanski said the issuance of the two arrest warrants is an “important moment in the justice process” for the court.
The warrants, issued following a request by ICC prosecutor Karim Khan, relate to “alleged war crimes of deportation of children from the occupied Ukrainian territories to the Russian Federation” since the start of the invasion, it said.
More than 16,000 Ukrainian children have been deported to Russia since the invasion on February 24, 2022, according to kyiv, with many being placed in institutions and foster homes.
Source: BFM TV
