Thursday, September 28 2023 13:09

ArmInfo. Armenia intends to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. At  its meeting on September 28, the Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs issued a positive conclusion regarding the ICC Charter of the Rome Statute submitted for ratification.

As Armenia's Representative on International Legal Affairs Yeghishe  Kirakosyan explained, Armenia signed the Rome Statute on July 17,  1998, but did not ratify it, since the Constitutional Court of the  Republic of Armenia in 2004 recognized two obligations of the treaty  as contradicting a number of provisions of the Constitution in force  at that time. At the end of 2022, the Armenian government again  appealed to the Constitutional Court on the issue of verifying the  constitutionality of the Rome Statute. On March 24, 2023, the  Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia recognized Armenia's  obligations under the Rome Statute of the ICC as consistent with the  Basic Law of the country. Kirakosyan noted that the ICC mainly  considers crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and  crimes of aggression. The court exercises international legal  capacity. It shall also have such legal capacity as may be necessary  for the exercise of its functions and the achievement of itspurposes.   The Court may exercise its functions and powers, as provided for in  this Statute, in the territory of any State Party and, by special  agreement, in the territory of any other State.

Kirakosyan noted that ratification of this document will make it  possible to initiate proceedings at the ICC against Azerbaijan for  war crimes committed in Artsakh, where forced deportation of the  population actually takes place, as well as for aggression against  Armenia. Without this document, Armenia had practically no mechanisms  to hold Baku accountable.

Armenia's Representative on International Legal Affairs noted that  since May 2021, the armed forces of Azerbaijan have invaded the  sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, carrying out military  aggression against the Republic of Armenia, and continue to remain in  various parts of the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia.   Then, in 2022, on September 13-14, they carried out a new large-scale  military aggression towards various parts of the sovereign territory  of the Republic of Armenia, which led to hundreds of casualties among  the armed forces and the civilian population and during which the  most serious war crimes were committed. Moreover, judging by  Azerbaijan's behavior and bellicose statements, the risk of new  military aggression by Azerbaijan against Armenia remains high. In  these circumstances, the speedy ratification of the RA ICC Statute is  very important, since after its ratification, crimes committed by the  Azerbaijani armed forces on the territory of Armenia, including war  crimes, will be subject to the jurisdiction of the ICC, which will  certainly become a deterrent for Baku.

On March 17 of this year, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for  Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, the Armenian side notes  that the ratification of the document is not directed against Russia.   Later, a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry reported that the  Russian side warned their Armenian partners about the extremely  negative consequences in the relations with Russia, in case of  Armenia's possible accession to the Rome Statute. The Foreign  Ministry also added that Moscow considers Yerevan's plans to join the  Rome Statute of the ICC unacceptable against the backdrop of warrants  against the leadership of the Russian Federation. In turn, Deputy  Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Hakob Arshakyan noted that Yerevan  can ensure that its further actions related to the ratification of  the Rome Statute do not damage Armenian-Russian strategic relations.