Absurd ICC 'Warrant' Under US Aegis Proves Russia 'Faces Implacable Enemy It Must Defeat'

The "absurd" statement by the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan KC, about issuing "arrest warrants" against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, and US support of the ICC decision, is further proof that Russia "faces an implacable enemy it must defeat", Christopher C Black, an international criminal lawyer with 20 years of experience in war crimes and international relations, told Sputnik.

The Hague's "warrants of arrest", made public on 17 March, accuse Putin and Lvova-Belova of illegally deporting children "from occupied areas of Ukraine to the Russian Federation" since 2022, referring to Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine launched in February 2022. Russian officials and diplomats have always specifically highlighted Moscow's efforts to relocate civilians, including children, away from frontline areas, to protect them from indiscriminate shelling attacks by Ukrainian forces on civilian infrastructure.

First, the absurdity of the ICC's "warrant" lies in the mere fact that the prosecutor's office has "done no independent investigations on the issue raised regarding children", Black highlighted.

"He has interviewed no one in Russia or the Donbass on the circumstances and conditions… Of course, they have chosen the issue of children so it has the most emotional impact," the commentator on international affairs said.

Furthermore, the legal expert echoed statements made by Russian officials, underscoring that the so-called "arrest warrants" issued by The Hague carry no legal weight.

"The ICC has no jurisdiction over Russia or its officials. Russia is not a party to the Rome Treaty, nor is the USA and China. The ICC has no jurisdiction to issue a warrant against a Russian official," Black said. However, he added:

"They will argue that a letter that Ukraine sent to the ICC in April 2014 in which Ukraine stated it acceded to ICC jurisdiction, even though not a member of the Treaty, gives it jurisdiction. But the legitimacy of that letter is questionable since it was sent by the NATO-imposed regime just after the coup of 2014 in Ukraine, so any lawyer would argue it had no legitimacy since it was not filed by the legitimate government of Ukraine but a NATO puppet government."

The legal expert was referring to the US-led and inspired color revolution – the Euromaidan coup in Kiev in 2014. The events resulted in the then-President Viktor Yanukovych being ousted, and erupted into the conflict in the Donbass which has lasted more than eight years, when Kiev authorities launched a military operation against the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Lugansk, which refused to recognize the new central government that came to power after the "revolution". It was those events that eventually prompted Russia’s decision to start its military operation in Ukraine on 24 February last year.

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The actions taken by the ICC are not those of an independent body, because Washington has its "assets inside the ICC at several levels", emphasized Black. This is "clearly done under the aegis of the USA," he told Sputnik, as the main objective is to "prevent any negotiations for peace, whatsoever".

"They have now branded President Putin, et al, as criminals. They did the same to President Milosevic of Yugoslavia and Saddam Hussein of Iraq. They both were executed by the Americans - Hussein hanged, Milosevic murdered as was Gaddafi. That is clear," the international criminal lawyer stated.

He added that the move by the ICC also appears to be timed to try to disrupt the meeting between Russia’s President Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, scheduled for 20 to 22 March.

"There is no going back now for the West with this. The Americans will state any attempts to support or negotiate with Russia are assisting criminals and there will be consequences. Russia faces an implacable enemy it must defeat. It has no choice now," Black concluded.

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