"The world is getting smaller" for Putin: EU welcomes Armenia’s ratification of Rome Statute

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission,  congratulated Armenia on the ratification of the Rome Statute. Now the country is obliged to execute an arrest warrant for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

Source: von der Leyen on Twitter (X), reports European Pravda

Details: The President of the European Commission noted that with the decision of the Armenian parliament “the world is getting smaller for the autocrat in the Kremlin.”

“I welcome the ratification of the International Criminal Court Rome Statute by the Armenian Parliament. Armenia has joined 123 states committed to the rule of law,” she added.

Background:

• The National Assembly of Armenia has passed a law ratifying the Rome Statute, the founding document of the International Criminal Court, which has issued a warrant for the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Armenia signed the Rome Statute in 1998, but did not ratify it.

• Yerevan has stressed the need to ratify the Statute and recognise its jurisdiction, emphasising that the risk of further military aggression against Armenia by Azerbaijan remains high, and that after ratification, Baku’s war crimes will fall under the jurisdiction of the ICC.

• States that have ratified the Rome Statute are obliged to arrest Vladimir Putin in the event of his arrival in their territory under a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in the context of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

• As for Russia’s concerns, Armenia’s representative for international legal issues, Yeghisheh Kirakosyan, recently clarified that there is no question of Putin being arrested upon entering Armenia after the ratification of the Rome Statute, as current heads of state are granted immunity.

• Earlier, Russia considered Armenia’s intention to join the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) unacceptable and warned Yerevan about the consequences of such a step.