Putin's Mongolia visit sparks controversy over ICC warrant

The leader of Russia, Vladimir Putin, arrived on Monday for a visit to Mongolia. The non-governmental organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called for his arrest. Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the unlawful deportation of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.

"Mongolia would break its international commitments as a member of the ICC if it allowed [Putin] to visit and did not arrest him," said Maria Elena Vignoli, a lawyer with HRW, on Monday.

However, the arrest did not happen. State officials and an honor guard honored the Russian dictator at the airport in Mongolia. Putin walked down the red carpet and then got into a government limousine.

Dr. Tomasz Lachowski, from the Department of International Law and International Relations at the University of Lodz, assessed this as a "violation of the obligation under the Rome Statute" of the International Criminal Court.

The ICC has wanted Putin since March 2023, when judges issued arrest warrants for him and Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, for war crimes involving the unlawful deportation of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia. Mongolia became a member of the ICC in 2003. According to the founding treaty, it must cooperate with the Court, including arresting and handing over suspects who enter its territory.

Allowing Putin, an ICC fugitive, would not only be an insult to the many victims of the crimes of Russian forces but would also undermine the basic principle that no one, no matter how powerful, is above the law," Vignoli stated.

By visiting Mongolia, Putin is in a member country of the Court for the first time since the ICC issued the arrest warrant. In August 2023, Putin was supposed to attend Johannesburg's annual BRICS leaders' summit. Still, after pressure from civil society and a court decision in South Africa confirming the state's obligation to execute the ICC arrest warrant, his visit was ultimately cancelled.

Human Rights Watch stated that all members of the International Criminal Court should follow South Africa's example and fulfill their obligations under the treaty establishing the Court. On June 15, Mongolia joined a statement by 94 ICC member states declaring "unwavering support" for the ICC in light of increasing threats against the Court and its officials. The statement also called on all members "to ensure full cooperation with the Court to fulfill its important mandate of delivering equal justice to all victims of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity." In 2023, a Supreme Court judge from Mongolia was elected to the ICC for the first time.

Besides the forced deportation of Ukrainian civilians to Russia, including children, Human Rights Watch has documented numerous other actions by Russian forces since their full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 that need to be investigated as potential war crimes, the Radio Free Europe website reminded. These include unlawful attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, attacks using banned weapons such as cluster munitions, and arbitrary detentions, torture, and summary executions of civilians and Ukrainian soldiers attempting to surrender.

Investigations conducted by the Court have so far resulted in arrest warrants for six individuals on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

"When Putin planned to attend the BRICS summit, (...) South Africa faced the same choice that Mongolia now faces," but clearly recognized its obligations, (...) and Putin ultimately stayed home," Vignoli said. "The Mongolian authorities now have the opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to delivering justice for international crimes, by either refusing entry to Putin or arresting him if he enters the country," she added.