VLADIMIR Putin could be put behind bars as the brazen tyrant is set to visit a country that has signed up to arrest him.
The dictator is wanted by the International Criminal Court after tens of thousands of Ukrainian children have been snatched by Russia.
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Putin is due to visit Mongolia on September 3 a member of the court now given the chance to play a decisive role in ending the invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine has called on the Mongolian government to arrest Putin blasting him as a war criminal.
They said: “The Ukrainian side hopes that the Government of Mongolia is aware of the fact that Vladimir Putin is a war criminal.”
But Putin’s mouthpiece Dmitry Peskov shot back at suggestions of an arrest saying: “No, no worries about this. We have a great dialogue with our friends from Mongolia.”
The Kremlin spokesperson said: “Obviously the visit, all of the aspects of the visit have been thoroughly discussed.”
Arresting the dictator and sending him to The Hague is up to the signatory countries as the ICC doesn’t have its own police force.
Many powerful countries are not members of the court – such as the US, Russia, and China.
The ICC issued an arrest warrant in March of last year against Putin, accusing him of the war crime of illegally deporting hundreds of children from Ukraine.
The Kremlin has dismissed the accusation, saying it is politically motivated.
The warrant obliges the court’s 124 member states, including Mongolia, to arrest Putin and transfer him to The Hague for trial if he sets foot on their territory.
ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah underscored in a statement on Friday that Mongolia “is a State Party to the ICC Rome Statute”.
“The ICC relies on its States Parties and other partners to execute its decisions including in relation to arrest warrants.
“In case of non-cooperation, ICC judges may make a finding to that effect and inform the Assembly of States Parties of it.
“It is then for the Assembly to take any measure it deems appropriate.”
Putin is set to visit the country to mark the 85th anniversary of the victory of Russian and Mongolian forces over Japan in WW2.
The warrant for the dictator concerns the “unlawful deportation” of children from Ukraine – a war crime under the Geneva Convention.
An investigation by The Sun into Ukraine’s missing children back in September 2022 revealed that thousands of children have been deported during Putin’s invasion.
Latest figures from Ukraine say 19,500 children have been deported or forcibly displaced, and only 388 have been returned.
The Hague-based court said it believes Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for the alleged crimes.
Ukraine hailed the arrest warrant as an “historic decision” when it was launched.
Putin hasn’t travelled to a signatory of the court since the arrest warrant was issued, skipping a trip to South Africa last year.
The Rainbow Nation lobbied Moscow for months for Putin not to attend to avoid the crazy situation.
The Kremlin eventually said Putin had decided not to attend in person and attended via video link.
Regime leaders and key figures hauled before international courts
Vladimir Putin is not the first dictator to be accused of war crimes by international courts.
- Slobodan Milosevic – former president of Serbia
The International Criminal Tribunal for Yogoslavia charged Milošević with genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo.
He was the first sitting head of state to be charged with war crimes but died in custody before he was tried.
- Ratko Mladic – former Serbian army commander
Mladic – dubbed the “Butcher of Bosnia” – was found guilty of genocide and jailed for life by the International Criminal Court for the former Yugoslavia in 2017.
He was blamed for the worst atrocities in Europe since World War II during the country’s 1990s conflict.
He faced 11 charges including genocide and crimes against humanity.
The UN court found him guilty on 10 counts including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, acquitting him of genocide in the municipalities.
- Charles Taylor – former president of Liberia
Taylor was accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity as a result of his involvement in the Sierra Leone Civil War from 1991 – 2002.
On April 26, 2012, Taylor was found guilty on all 11 counts of bearing responsibility for the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by rebel forces during the war.
He was sentenced to 50 years in prison.
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