The news
Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Mongolian counterpart Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh in Ulaanbaatar on Tuesday, his first visit to a member state of the International Criminal Court since an arrest warrant was issued for him on war crimes charges nearly 18 months ago.
Ukraine last week called on Mongolia to arrest Putin and hand him over to the ICC in The Hague, but a Kremlin spokesman reportedly dismissed suggestions that the Russian leader could be detained, citing Russia’s “beautiful dialogue“with the East Asian country.
An ICC spokesman confirmed to The Associated Press that Mongolia is obligated to cooperate with the court under the Rome Statute, but did not elaborate on what measures could be taken against Mongolia if it failed to cooperate.
While Mongolia is unlikely to arrest Putin, the ICC arrest warrant has complicated Putin’s travel plans before: the Russian president did not attend the BRICS summit in South Africa last year amid uncertainty over whether Johannesburg would abide by the decision.