Russian leader Vladimir Putin has flown to Kazakhstan on a working trip, despite an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant ordering the country to arrest him.
Interfax and a number of media reported on Putinʼs visit.
The head of the Russian Federation will take part in the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana, where, among other things, he is scheduled to meet with the President of the Peopleʼs Republic of China Xi Jinping, the President of Turkey Recep Erdogan and the Acting President of Iran Mohammad Mohbar.
The leaders of Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Mongolia, Qatar and the UAE will also be present at the summit. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres may also arrive in Astana. The main program of the SCO summit will be held on Thursday, July 4.
- On March 17, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and the Commissioner for Childrenʼs Rights Maria Lvova-Belova. They are suspected of illegally deporting Ukrainian children from the occupied territories of Ukraine to the Russian Federation, which is a war crime. Putin and Lvova-Belova, as official suspects, should be arrested in countries that have ratified the Rome Statute. That is, visits to 123 countries are closed for them.
- After issuing the warrant, Putin traveled only to Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, China and the DPRK. These countries have not ratified the statute, but issuing a warrant from the ICC should ideally make Putin ungovernable.