An arrest warrant has been issued for the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, by the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the unlawful deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia.
The ICC issued the warrant on Friday, following applications submitted by the prosecution on February 22, 2023.
In a statement released on Friday, the ICC said that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the crimes committed in Ukrainian territory from February 24, 2022.
The court, which is based in the Netherlands, explained that its pre-trial judges had assessed that “there are reasonable grounds to believe that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes.”
The court further stated that Putin had failed to “exercise control properly over civilian and military subordinates who committed the acts, or allowed for their commission, and who was under his effective authority and control.”
Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, Putin’s presidential commissioner for children’s rights, is also alleged to have committed similar crimes.
