International Criminal Court investigates why Mongolia did not arrest Putin during his visit

The ICC spokesman Fadi El Abdallah made the statement at a meeting with Ukrainian journalists, Babel reports.

According to the spokesperson, judges are currently reviewing Mongolia's cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in light of the fact that Putin has not been detained in the country.

Abdallah confirmed that legal proceedings regarding Mongolia's cooperation are still ongoing, and while the outcome is ultimately in the hands of the judges, no public decision has been made yet.

At the same time, he added that the judges could decide either that the state has complied with the requirements for cooperation with the ICC or that such cooperation has not occurred, and that this needs to be reported to the Assembly of States Parties.

According to the spokesperson, the Assembly may then take whatever actions it deems necessary to persuade Mongolia to cooperate and fulfill its obligations.

Background on Putin's visit to Mongolia

On August 30, the Kremlin press service announced that Putin was to visit Mongolia on September 3 at the invitation of President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh. This marked Putin's first visit to a country that has ratified the Rome Statute. However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov asserted that the Kremlin is not concerned about the possibility of Putin being arrested during the trip.

On the same day, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry called on the Mongolian authorities to arrest Putin and hand him over to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The International Criminal Court said that the Mongolian authorities, in accordance with their obligations, should arrest Vladimir Putin if he visits the country.

On September 2, the Russian leader did fly to Mongolia for a visit. Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tykhyi said that Mongolia would face consequences for refusing to arrest Putin.

Mongolia did not arrest Russian leader Vladimir Putin due to its reliance on Russian energy imports.