The court in The Hague responded to Moscow
The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) responded to Russia's threats, deploring the country's attempts to obstruct "international efforts to ensure accountability" for violations of international law.
"The Presidency of the Assembly emphasizes that the Court, its elected officials and its staff have strong support from the Assembly of States parties to the Rome Statute," the statement said. "We confirm his full confidence in the Court as an independent and impartial judicial institution and reiterate our strong commitment to uphold and defend the principles and values contained in the Rome Statute and to preserve its integrity without any threats," the statement added.
Russia's Investigative Committee announced it had opened criminal proceedings against prosecutors and judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) who issued an arrest warrant for President Vladimir Putin on war crimes charges on Friday.
The committee, which is responsible for investigating serious crimes, said there was no basis to prosecute Russian President Putin and that heads of state enjoy absolute immunity from foreign jurisdiction.
The ICC prosecutor's actions show signs of a crime under Russian law, the Committee said, noting that it was a matter of knowingly accusing an innocent person of a crime and "preparing an attack on a representative of a foreign state, who enjoys international protection, in order to complicate international relations".
Russia's move is a symbolic gesture of defiance in response to Putin's arrest warrant, accusing him and the children's rights commissioner of a war crime for deporting children from Ukraine to Russia.
The Kremlin called the ICC's decision shameful and legally invalid, considering that Russia is not a signatory to the treaty that established the ICC.