Russian President Vladimir Putin obtained a lavish reception in Mongolia on Tuesday, regardless of worldwide requires his arrest on an Worldwide Legal Courtroom (ICC) warrant. That is Putin’s first go to to an ICC member nation for the reason that court docket issued the warrant in March 2023.
The warrant accuses Putin of involvement within the abduction of Ukrainian youngsters, placing Mongolia in a difficult place. The landlocked nation, which transitioned from communist rule to democracy within the Nineties, maintains important financial ties with Russia and China. Whereas Mongolia has fostered relations with Western nations, it stays depending on its bigger neighbors.
In Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital, Putin was welcomed with an honor guard wearing conventional purple and blue uniforms, paying homage to the private guard of Genghis Khan, the founding father of the Mongol Empire. A crowd watched as Putin and Mongolian President Khurelsukh Ukhnaa walked up a red-carpeted staircase to the Authorities Palace, pausing to bow earlier than a statue of Genghis Khan. In the course of the ceremony, a small group of protesters with Ukrainian flags was eliminated by police, whereas others with anti-Putin banners dispersed.
The nice and cozy reception coincided with a tragic growth in Ukraine. Russian forces struck a navy coaching facility and a close-by hospital in Poltava, Ukraine, killing at least 41 people and injuring 180 others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the strike as one of many deadliest for the reason that battle started on February 24, 2022.
Putin, on his maiden go to to Mongolia in final 5 years, took half in a ceremony to commemorate the eighty fifth anniversary of a joint Soviet and Mongolian victory over Japanese military when it had Manchuria in its clutches. In 1939, 1000’s of troopers on each side died in months of combating over the border location between Manchuria and Mongolia.
Throughout his go to, Putin and Mongolian officers signed agreements to reinforce vitality cooperation, together with a feasibility research for an influence plant improve and an environmental research for a proposed hydroelectric plant. Putin additionally outlined plans to enhance rail connections between the 2 international locations and invited President Khurelsukh to the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, later this 12 months. Khurelsukh accepted the invitation, as per a report on Russian state information company RIA Novosti.
The European Union expressed concern that Mongolia won’t execute the ICC warrant. European Fee spokeswoman Nabila Massrali acknowledged that whereas Mongolia has the fitting to develop worldwide ties in response to its pursuits, it has authorized obligations as an ICC member. Over 50 Russians overseas, together with Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was free of a Russian jail in August within the largest East-West prisoner swap for the reason that Chilly Warfare, urged Mongolia to detain Putin. In response, Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s Safety Council deputy secretary, denounced the warrant as “unlawful.”
Putin’s go to marks his first to Mongolia in 5 years and follows latest journeys to China, North Korea, Vietnam, and Kazakhstan. His worldwide travels goal to counteract the isolation he faces as a result of ongoing Ukraine invasion.