International Criminal Court issued arrest warrant against Putin, but that didn't stop him from visiting Mariupol in Ukraine

For what seems like the first time ever, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Russian-occupied Mariupol in Ukraine on Sunday, March 19, even as his world got a lot smaller with the arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC). 

Putin reached the port city located near Russia's border in eastern Ukraine by a helicopter. He visited the Russian-held territory in the cover of the night and inspected the "rebuilding" efforts by Russian authorities. 

1/2 Russian President Vladimir Putin came to the DPR for the first time since the beginning of the SVO - he visited Mariupol and examined the city, talked with the townspeople.
Putin arrived in Mariupol by helicopter, and during the trip around the city he himself was driving. pic.twitter.com/h7R6aB0v4X

— Victor vicktop55 (@vicktop55) March 19, 2023

Putin was accompanied by Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin. Russian state media also reported how Putin decided to drive around the city at a whim. 

He also appeared to be speaking with at least one local resident.  

How Ukraine reacted?

• Mariupol's Ukrainian Mayor-in-exile Vadym Boychenko told BBC that Vladimir Putin was a criminal coming to visit the crime scene he created. 

• Other Ukrainian officials also said Putin preferred to visit at night so that he doesn't see the destruction he's caused.
• Mariupol has been occupied by Russia for over 10 months and was the site of a bloody battle. 
• Ukraine estimates that at least 20,000 people were killed in fighting here, while tens of thousands were forced to flee. 
• Among the casualties were some 300 people who died in a building that was bombed by Russian forces last year. 

Does it mean peace in Ukraine?

Xi Jinping describes his visit to Moscow as a "journey of friendship, cooperation and peace", though China has been accused by the West of tacitly backing Russia's war in Ukrainehttps://t.co/zZMkCXwTXT pic.twitter.com/VdvusnaXN7

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) March 20, 2023

• Putin's visit is unlikely to bring a stop to the war in Ukraine. However, Chinese Premier Xi Jinping is visiting Russia on March 20.
• Xi Jinping is also planning to meet Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky after his visit to Russia. 
• And the image China wants to portray is clear, Beijing wants to play peacemaker. But will it really succeed?

The ICC arrest warrant:

Situation in #Ukraine: #ICC judges issue arrest warrants against Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova
Read more ⤵️
https://t.co/5OMC7Xuuy5

— Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) March 17, 2023

• Vladimir Putin is at the heart of several new developments at the moment. 
• For one, Putin's visit to Mariupol came just days after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against the Russian leader and Russia's Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belov.
• The arrest warrant has been issued against the two Russian heads for the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia after the invasion in 2022. 
• It is only the third-ever arrest warrant issued by the ICC against the head of a state. 
• Kremlin has dismissed the arrest warrant calling it nothing but toilet paper. 

What does the ICC arrest warrant really mean?

• Ukraine, the US, Russian opposition leader in jail, Alexei Navalny have all welcomed the arrest warrant but also acknowledged that it is more symbolic than anything. 

International Criminal Court issues warrant of arrest for Putin. The historic decision, from which historical responsibility will begin. pic.twitter.com/cUW0WbeGKJ

— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 17, 2023

• The ICC arrest warrant means Putin needs to be arrested and presented at The Hague to sit for his trial. 
• But it isn't easy to arrest Putin and make him stand trial. For one, Russia is not a signatory to the ICC. 
• In fact, Moscow had become a signatory in 2000 only to change its status in 2016. 
• ICC has 123 member states. Meaning, if Putin steps foot in one of these countries, then he could be deported to The Hague. 
• Ukraine and the US are actually not among the member states, but Putin is unlikely to be welcomed to these countries. 
• Germany, Canada, the UK, South Africa, and even Afghanistan are just some countries that are ICC member states. 

BREAKING: Germany confirms it will arrest Vladimir Putin if he travels there

— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) March 19, 2023

• But being a member state doesn't mean the countries will hand over an ICC criminal just like that. It is left to the discretion of the governments ultimately. 
• For example, Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir who had an ICC arrest warrant issued against him visited member state South Africa in 2015, but the government refused to hand him over as he was a serving head of state. 
• Omar al-Bashir is still hiding from arrest. 
• But it doesn't mean that ICC arrest warrants have never worked. 
• Slobodan Milosevic, the former President of Serbia actually ended up in The Hague to face charges of war crimes decades later. 
• Milosevic wound up in jail because he lost power and the new government elites of Serbia decided to hand him over for political and economic reasons. 

Putin loves his international visits, something observers say he has used to burnish his image domestically. But the arrest warrant means there are only a few countries he can now visit without losing sleep. It also means that he needs to die while in power or face the uncertainty of a new Russian leader turning him over. 

The arrest warrant against Putin is a warning for other Russian leaders that they can also be served with a similar warrant. For them, there is a lot at stake, like their children studying in elite universities in Western Europe or their offshore accounts. 

Imminently, it needs to be seen what the G20 summit in India in September brings for Vladimir Putin. India is not a signatory to the ICC, but will Putin really be safe now that he officially has a tag of a criminal among world leaders?