New York: The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russia's former defense minister Sergei Shoigu and its military chief of staff Gen Valery Gerasimov of war crimes and crimes against humanity for attacking civilian targets in Ukraine.
In an official statement, the court noted that "there are reasonable grounds to believe" that the two officials are involved in the war crime of directing attacks at civilian objects and causing excessive harm to civilians. They also bear responsibility for missile strikes carried out by the Russian armed forces against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure from at least October 10, 2022, until at least March 9, 2023.
The Russian Security Council dismissed the arrest warrants as pointless in its initial response this week, describing them as “a shaking of the air”, an idiom for an action with no real impact.
“This is a shaking of the air, as the ICC’s jurisdiction does not extend to Russia, and was adopted as part of the West’s hybrid war against our country,” the press service of the Russian Security Council said, as relayed by the Interfax news agency. It described the decision as “null and void”.
Russia isn't a member of the global court, doesn't recognize its jurisdiction, and refuses to hand over suspects. Putin himself also faces an ICC arrest warrant, connected to the alleged forced relocation of Ukrainian children to Russia and Russian families. That was issued in March 2023. In total, the ICC has sought the arrest of eight Russian officials since it invaded Ukraine in 2022.
