“A historic decision that will lead to a historic recognition of responsibilities” : Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed, Friday, March 17, the international arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Russian President Vladimir Putin, accused of being responsible for the deportation of thousands of Ukrainian children . “It would have been impossible to implement such a criminal operation without the approval of the man who is at the head of the terrorist state”, added the Ukrainian President. According to him, no fewer than 16,000 children are affected by these forced transfers.
“We are not yet fully aware of the consequences of the ICC’s decision. It is a strong, courageous and just measure for our country and its children. At the international level, the status of Putin and his entourage is clearly defined: an international criminal who abducts children and commits genocide against them.declares to World Oksana Filipishyna, deputy head of the analytical department of the Ukrainian Helsinki Group for Human Rights: “It is true that the International Criminal Court does not use the word ‘genocide’. But I’m sure it is. As the investigation continues, this crime of Putin will be proven.”assures this former representative of the Ukrainian ombudsman for human rights for the respect of the rights of the child and the family (2012-2022).
In Russia, the news aroused significant emotion, even if the officials were particularly concerned, Friday evening, to underline its insignificant character. The spokeswoman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, recalled that “the decisions of the International Criminal Court have no meaning for our country, including from a legal point of view”Moscow not being a State Party to the Rome Statute.
“Unacceptable”
“The decisions of this tribunal are null and void”reacted in the same way the spokesman of the Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, judging the very idea of an arrest of Vladimir Putin “scandalous and unacceptable”. The head of the committee of inquiry, a judicial body, even demanded “verifications” on the authors of this decision.
More colorfully, ex-president Dmitry Medvedev referred to the arrest warrant in more trivial terms. “The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin. No need to explain where this paper should be used”he wrote on social media, ending his post with a toilet paper roll emoticon.
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