US President Joe Biden, flying Friday from the White House to his home in Delaware, commented at the request of journalists on the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant against Vladimir Putin.
“I think it’s warranted,” Biden said. He noted that the ICC is not recognized by the United States, but added that the warrant “is a very strong argument.” “He clearly committed war crimes,” Biden said.
The United States, in addition to the International Criminal Court, has found that Russian forces committed war crimes in Ukraine and supports the prosecution of those responsible for war crimes. A State Department spokesperson issued a written statement to Reuters on the matter.
“There is no doubt that Russia is committing war crimes and atrocities in Ukraine, and we have made it clear that those responsible must be held accountable,” the State Department said in a statement. “The decision of the ICC prosecutor was made independently, based on the facts available to him.
The ICC decision obliges the 123 signatory states of the Rome Statute to arrest Putin and hand him over to The Hague for trial if he finds himself on the territory of these states.
The ICC believes that Putin should be arrested because he is suspected of illegal deportation of Ukrainian children and illegal movement of people from Ukrainian territory to the Russian Federation. On the same charges, the ICC has also issued an arrest warrant against Russia’s Children’s Ombudsman, Maria Lvova-Belova.
Ukraine officially declares that more than 16,000 Ukrainian children have been illegally transferred to Russia or to Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories.
A report by Yale researchers released in February 2023 says Russia is holding at least 6,000 Ukrainian children in Crimea, which Moscow annexed to Ukraine in 2014. The report lists at least 43 camps and other institutions where Ukrainian children were held. detained.
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan launched an investigation into possible Russian war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Ukraine a year ago. During his four trips to Ukraine, he said he was investigating allegations of crimes against children and attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
