The Baltic nations Estonia and Lithuania, two of Ukraine’s most ardent supporters in the war against Russia, have criticized Mongolia for welcoming Russian President Vladimir Putin despite an international arrest warrant against him.
“The fact that the Mongolian government decided to roll out the red carpet instead of arresting (Putin) strongly undermines the ICC and the international legal system,” Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said in a statement on Tuesday, referring to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
The ICC has issued an arrest warrant against Putin for Russia’s war in Ukraine and Mongolia recognizes the court. However, his arrest is considered highly unlikely because of Mongolia’s economic dependence on Russia and its other neighbour China.
Putin met with his Mongolian counterpart Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh at the start of his visit to the country on Tuesday, marking the first time since the warrant came into effect in March 2023 that the Kremlin leader travelled to a country that legally should extradite him to the court’s base in the Netherlands.
“Mongolia had the historic chance to contribute to the end of Russia’s war in Ukraine and they decided to pass on it,” Tsahkna said.
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis described the Mongolian government’s decision to ignore the arrest warrant against Putin as “unacceptable.”
“This is another example of a system based on international law that is faltering,” he was quoted as saying by the BNS news agency.
