An arrest warrant has been issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin.
ICC issued the arrest warrant over the unlawful deportation of children from Ukraine to Russia.
The ICC in a statement released on Friday said the warrant became necessary following the applications submitted by the prosecution on February 22, 2023.
It said Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the crimes committed in Ukrainian territory from February 24, 2022.
The court, based in the Netherlands, said its pre-trial judges had assessed, “There are reasonable grounds to believe that Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the aforementioned crimes.”
It added 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.”
The ICC said, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, Putin’s presidential commissioner for children’s rights, is also alleged to have committed similar crimes.
