In this group photo released by Russian state news agency Sputnik, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mongolian President Khürelsukh walk during an official welcome ceremony in Ulaanbaatar on September 3, 2024 Pass the guard of honor.
Sofia Sanderskaya | AFP | Getty Images
There is nothing special about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Mongolia on Tuesday – he will meet the country’s leaders, hold talks on developing bilateral relations and attend a lavish reception.
Unusually, Mongolia, a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), was supposed to arrest the Russian president as soon as he set foot on Mongolian soil on Monday night.
Putin is the subject of an international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in March 2023. Claims he is responsible for war crimespaying particular attention to the illegal deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia.
At the time, the Kremlin called the ICC’s actions “outrageous and unacceptable” and said they had no impact on Russia, which is not an ICC member.
With Putin visiting the country – his first to an ICC member state since the arrest warrant was issued – Mongolia now finds itself in trouble with apparent impunity.
Under the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC that came into force in 2002, ICC member states are obliged to detain and surrender to the court anyone subject to an ICC arrest warrant if they set foot on their territory.
However, courts have been unable to enforce the rule, and Mongolia ignored it on Tuesday when it welcomed Putin with an honor guard when he met President Khürelsukh in the capital Ulaanbaatar.
In this group photo released by Russian state news agency Sputnik, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mongolian President Khürelsukh walk during an official welcome ceremony in Ulaanbaatar on September 3, 2024 Pass the guard of honor.
Sofia Sanderskaya | AFP | Getty Images
Mongolia’s risky moves have alarmed the Netherlands-based International Criminal Court and Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia in February 2022.
International Criminal Court Spokesperson Fadi el-Abdallah told the BBC on Friday Mongolia is “obliged” to comply with the arrest warrant and said “in the event of failure to cooperate, the ICC judges may make appropriate findings and notify them to the Assembly of States Parties. The Assembly will then take action” on any measures it deems appropriate.
However, he did not specify what measures could be taken and clarified that the ICC does allow some exemptions from the rule, such as when a country may be forced to engage in “violation of treaty obligations” with another country or when it would violate “a third country’s diplomatic immunity of persons or property,” the BBC report stated.
International legal experts warned on Monday that Mongolia’s failure to meet its obligations to the International Criminal Court is likely to have consequences, with some even raising the possibility of prosecution.
“States parties to the ICC should not invite persons subject to ICC arrest warrants to visit their countries for any reason. Full stop,” said Mark Ellis, executive director of the International Bar Association (IBA), an organization representing the global legal community. pointed out.
“Mongolia’s membership of the ICC and its respect for the rule of law requires that it comply with this arrest warrant or let President Putin know that he is not welcome in Mongolia. This is what Mongolia must do as a state party. Law above politics ,“ he said in emailed comments Monday.
On August 7, 2024, in Moscow, Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin entered the hall when meeting with ministers at his official residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. This week, Putin called on Iran to limit damage to relations with Israel.
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The IBA went on to warn that Mongolia, a member of the ICC since 2002, could face “consequences if it does not cooperate”. Although there was no specification of what these might be, there is speculation that Mongolia may now be subject to prosecution by the International Criminal Court.
Mongolia has yet to comment or respond to criticism of Putin’s trip. CNBC has contacted the country’s foreign ministry for comment.
Russia mocks ICC
Russia was optimistic about the trip to Ulaanbaatar beforehand, with no apparent concerns about possible arrests in a country where Moscow aims to expand its regional influence and energy infrastructure.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Friday that the Kremlin had “no concerns” about the visit and said the Russian leader had “an excellent dialogue with our Mongolian friends.”
The Russian media TASS quoted Russian presidential assistant Yuri Ushakov as saying that the two leaders will discuss cooperation between Moscow and Ulaanbaatar “in industrial production, agriculture and railway transportation” as well as educational plans and exchanges.
Elena Davlikanova, a democracy researcher at the Center for European Policy Analysis, commented that Russia used the visit to “mock the ICC” and that the economically pleading country deliberately chose to visit the country, To test the mettle of the International Criminal Court.
“Of course, Putin would never travel if there was any chance of being arrested. The country has assured Moscow that the president will not be detained,” she noted in an analysis on Monday.
“Mongolia is sandwiched between two powerful neighbors, Russia and China, and has long had its freedom of movement restricted, so Putin’s choice makes sense,” she added.
On August 16, 2024, in Sumy Oblast, Ukraine, a pickup truck carrying Ukrainian soldiers drove towards the Russian border. The fighting in the Kursk region began on August 6, 2024, when Ukrainian armed forces crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border near the city of Sudja and began to penetrate deep into Russian territory. Within days, they took control of dozens of settlements in the Kursk region. .
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For Russia, she said, the visit not only distracted attention from Ukraine’s incursion into the Kursk border region but also “helped maintain Putin’s image as a strong leader at home and abroad.” any prospect of war crimes.
“Putin is willing to flout international legal norms and undermine international law. Hungary and Armenia, both members of the ICC, have assured the president that he will not be arrested on their soil, further weakening the court’s effectiveness. If the world order continues Weakening, Davlikanova said, the prospects for tribunals, reparations and accountability for Russian war criminals would be significantly diminished, dashing hopes for a just peace in Ukraine.
Panic in Ukraine and Europe
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Heorhiy Tykhyi said on telegraph on monday “Mongolia is sharing responsibility for war crimes by allowing an alleged criminal to evade justice.” He added that Kyiv would work with its partners “to ensure that this has an impact on Ulaanbaatar”.
The European Commission on Monday called on Mongolia to fulfill its obligations to the International Criminal Court.
“Mongolia, like all other countries, has the right to develop international relations in accordance with its own interests, but… Mongolia has been a party to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court since 2002 and assumes the legal obligations it undertakes. We expressed our concerns about the visit and made our position on the ICC clear through our mission in Mongolia. Commission spokesperson Nabila Maslali said on Monday.
Human rights campaigners also criticized the move Human Rights Watch Groups calling on Mongolia to arrest Putin include Amnesty International.
“Mongolia’s international legal obligations are clear,” Amnesty International Mongolia executive director Altantuya Batdorj said on Monday.
“President Putin is a fugitive. Any visit to an ICC member state that does not end in an arrest would encourage President Putin’s current course of action and must be seen as undermining the ICC’s prosecution of suspected war criminals part of a strategic effort,” Batdorji said. in comments posted online.
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