Russian officials are commemorating United States President Donald Trumps relocate to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) as a game-changer that will weaken the courts international influence and obstruct the Wests efforts to separate President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle.Announced after hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself wanted by the ICC in Washington, Trumps sanctions on The Hague-based court could impose financial and visa restrictions on anybody helping ICC probes against American people or allies.The choice was gotten with complete satisfaction and even celebrating among leading Russian authorities, The Moscow Times has actually discovered, with Moscow seeing it as a direct blow to the efforts by Ukraines allies to turn Putin into an international pariah.The Kremlin was booked in its public action to Trumps relocation, with Putins spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stating: Russia does not recognize the ICC.
United States sanctions versus them are none of our business.Im delighted.
This is excellent news.
The ICC had gotten too big-headed, and now Washington has actually put them in their location, one high-ranking Kremlin authorities told The Moscow Times on condition of anonymity.A Russian diplomat was a lot more blunt, calling Trumps move a gift to Moscow.
This wont modification the circumstance overnight, however it offers the President, his team and his security services more maneuverability when planning travel.
We wont have a repeat of the BRICS summit fiasco in South Africa, the diplomat told The Moscow Times.The action is a stark contrast to the panic felt in Moscow simply 2 years back, when the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin and his childrens rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for the prohibited deportations of Ukrainian children.Seven months later, the court included then-Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to its desired list for attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure.The ICC warrant for Putin stimulated anemergency conference in the Kremlin, where leading authorities scrambled to examine the fallout.The Russian president, who is famously deeply concerned with individual security, was required to cancel key foreign trips, consisting of an appearance at a BRICSsummit hosted by ICC member South Africa.In retaliation, Russia provided arrestwarrants for ICC judges and district attorneys involved in the Putin case and criminalized cooperation with the court.
Former President Dmitry Medvedev, now a firebrand pro-war hawk, went as far as to threaten a nuclear strike on the ICCs headquarters in The Hague.The mood in Moscow has actually especially moved because then.In September 2024, Putin tested the limitations of the ICC warrants power by checking out Mongolia, marking his first and so far only journey to a country recognizing the courts jurisdiction.With Trumps sanctions in location, the Kremlin is hoping much more doors will quickly reopen.Current and previous Kremlin and federal government officials who talked to The Moscow Times rejected the courts efforts to offer justice with the same expression: We do not offer a damn.