Arrest warrant issued against Putin over alleged war crimes in Ukraine

The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest order on Friday for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian official Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova for the alleged conspiracy to deport Ukraine children to Russia, according to a report.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague charged Russian President Vladimir Putin with war crimes committed by Russian forces in Ukraine during the year-long conflict.

The Hague-based court said in a statement on Friday Putin “is allegedly responsible for the war crime of unlawful deportation of the population (children) and that of unlawful transfer of population (children) from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation.”

It also issued a warrant for the arrest of Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, the Russian Federation’s commissioner for children’s rights, on similar charges, according to Al Jazeera.

Russia did not immediately respond to the ICC’s decision on Friday. Russia has denied perpetrating atrocities during its February 2014 invasion of Ukraine.

The orders were issued a day after a United Nations-backed investigation accused Russia of perpetrating widespread war crimes in Ukraine, including forced deportations of minors in areas under its control, according to Al Jazeera.

The UN genocide convention defines “forcibly transferring children of the group to another group” as one of five acts that can be prosecuted as genocide.

According to DW News, the successful extradition of President Putin could pose a significantly higher issue because Russia does not recognise the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Russia denies intentionally causing harm to civilians, but its defence ministry claims to have targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.