Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, arrived smoothly in Mongolia for a state visit on Monday.
Under international law, Mongolia — a member of the ICC — is supposed to act upon the court’s warrants. The European Union and Ukraine have both reminded the East Asian nation of this obligation in recent days, put Russian officials have said they have “no worries” about Putin’s visit.
The ICC’s warrant, issued March 2023, accuses Putin of war crimes related to the deportation and transfer of children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia.
There is no indication as yet that Mongolia plans to arrest Putin. If it fails to, it will likely face prosecution over its inaction, a legal expert told POLITICO.
“Mongolia will most certainly be prosecuted by the International Criminal Court for breaching its duty of cooperation,” said Tamás Hoffmann, senior research fellow at the Institute for Legal Studies.
“The ICC may then decide to refer the case to the Assembly of Parties, which could condemn Mongolia’s violation under a so-called non-compliance procedure. However, there are no serious consequences, such as sanctions, for the offending country,” Hoffmann said.
In 2015, South Africa failed to arrest Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who was wanted for crimes against humanity including genocide, during a visit to the country. The ICC two years later found the country had failed to comply with its obligations. However, it did not refer South Africa to the U.N, Security Council for censure.
Altantuya Batdorj, executive director of Amnesty International Mongolia, said: “To shelter a fugitive from international justice would not only amount to obstruction of justice. If Mongolia provides even a temporary safe haven for President Putin, it will effectively become an accomplice in ensuring impunity for some of the most serious crimes under international law.”
Mongolia, a country around half the size of Europe but inhabited by only around 3.4 million people, has important trade ties with Russia, which along with China is one of only two countries it shares a border with.
The ICC did not immediately respond to POLITICO’s request for comment.
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