President Vladimir Putin has signed a law under which rulings issued by foreign courts with criminal jurisdiction will no longer be enforced in Russia if they were made without Russia’s participation.
The document also stipulates that decisions of international judicial bodies whose jurisdiction is not based on an international treaty or a UN Security Council resolution will not be enforced.
Earlier, Vladimir Gruzdev, head of the Russian Lawyers Association, clarified that the law would apply, among other things, to verdicts of the International Criminal Court (ICC). According to lawyers, the restrictions would also cover a potential tribunal on Ukraine.
In March 2023, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and Russia’s Commissioner for Children’s Rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, accusing them of responsibility for the deportation of Ukrainian children to territories not controlled by Kyiv. Russia has categorically denied the accusations.
On December 12, a Russian court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight ICC judges in absentia to prison terms ranging from three and a half to 15 years. They were convicted of charges including knowingly prosecuting innocent individuals, unlawfully initiating criminal proceedings, illegal detention, and preparing attacks against persons under international protection.
