According to a report released by the United Nations, the Pre-Trial Chamber II of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague issued arrest warrants for two individuals: a 70-year-old man from St. Petersburg, Russia named “Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin” and an alleged female accomplice named “Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova.”
The ICC alleges that the Russian man, who works as a politician in the Russian Federation since taking office on May 7, 2000, is responsible for the war crimes of unlawful deportation of population (children) and unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation (under articles 8(2)(a)(vii) and 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute).
At the very least, as of February 24, 2022, the alleged crimes took place on occupied Ukrainian territory. It is likely that Putin is personally culpable for the aforementioned offenses (i) for having committed the acts directly, jointly with others, and/or through others (Article 25(3)(a) of the Rome Statute), and (ii) for failing to exercise proper control over civilian and military subordinates who committed or allowed for the commission of the acts while under his effective authority and control, according to the ICC.
With respect to the war crimes of unlawful deportation of population and unlawful transfer of population from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation, to the prejudice of Ukrainian children, Pre-Trial Chamber II found probable cause to indict the suspects on February 22, 2023.
Within days of the release of the arrest warrant, world leaders, including the leaders of the United States, Germany, and France, expressed their support for its issuance by The Hague. The German Justice Minister Marco Buschmann warned that the Russian president will be prosecuted and extradited to The Hague if he steps foot on German soil.
You can read the full report by clicking here.
