Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to visit Mongolia next week, according to the Kremlin, despite the fact that Mongolia is a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for him last year.
The visit, scheduled for September 3, will be Putin’s first trip to an ICC member state since the arrest warrant was issued in March 2023 on suspicion of war crimes in Ukraine. Under the Rome Statute, ICC member states are required to arrest suspects who are subject to an arrest warrant if they enter their territory. However, the ICC lacks the mechanism to compel states to do so. According to the Kremlin’s statement, Putin will travel to Mongolia at the invitation of President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh “to participate in the commemoration of the 85th anniversary of the joint victory of Soviet and Mongolian forces over the Japanese at Khalkhin Gol.” “Putin will also hold talks with Khurelsukh and other senior Mongolian officials,” the report added.
The ICC has accused Putin of personal responsibility for the abduction of children from Ukraine, where Moscow has been waging war for the past two and a half years. This was the first time a global court issued an arrest warrant against a leader of one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
The Kremlin dismissed the warrant as “invalid.”
Since then, Putin has avoided traveling to ICC member countries. He skipped the BRICS summit in South Africa last year.
Last year, the Kremlin also expressed anger at its long-time ally Armenia for joining the ICC, which increased tensions between Moscow and Yerevan. Armenian officials, however, quickly assured Russia that Putin would not be arrested if he entered the country.
