Putin Visits Mongolia Despite International Arrest Warrant

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday landed in Mongolia, a member of the International Court that issued an arrest warrant for him. Putin is scheduled to meet with Mongolian leader Ukhnaa Khurelsukh during the official visit. Notably, it is Putin's first visit to a member country of the International Criminal Court (ICC) since the court issued an arrest warrant for him nearly 18 months ago on charges of war crimes in Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend a ceremony on Tuesday marking the 1939 victory of Soviet and Mongolian troops over the Japanese army that had taken control of Manchuria in northeastern China. The ICC has accused the Russian president of being responsible for the forced transfer of children to Russia after Moscow’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine has called on Mongolia to arrest Putin and hand him over to the court in The Hague. Meanwhile, Putin's spokesperson said last week that the Kremlin is not worried about the possibility of Putin being arrested in Mongolia.

Members of the court are required to detain suspects if an arrest has been issued. However, the court does not have any enforcement mechanism. Mongolia is a sparsely populated country between China and Russia. The country is highly dependent on Russia for electricity and fuel and on China for investment in the mining industry.