Armenia FM to take part in ICC Assembly in Hague

ArmInfo. Today, December 2, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan left for the Netherlands on  a working visit.

According to Ani Badalyan, press secretary of the Armenian Foreign  Ministry, after Armenia joined the International Criminal Court in  February, Minister Mirzoyan will take part in the session of the 23rd  Assembly of States Parties to the ICC in The Hague for the first  time.

According to her, bilateral meetings with partners from the  Netherlands are also planned.

On February 1, 2024, Armenia officially joined the International  Criminal Court. Armenia became the 124th state party to the ICC, as  well as the 19th state from Eastern Europe.

The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia ratified the Rome  Statute of the International Criminal Court at its session on October  3, 2023. After the ratification of the document by the parliament, it  was signed by the President of the country and entered into force 60  days after the completion of domestic procedures.

According to Yeghishe Kirakosyan, Armenia's representative on  international legal issues, the ICC mainly considers crimes of  genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of  aggression. The Court may exercise its functions and powers, as  provided for in this statute, on the territory of any state party  and, by special agreement, on the territory of any other state. 

Kirakosyan noted that the ratification of this document will allow  initiating proceedings in the ICC against Azerbaijan for war crimes  committed in Artsakh, where the forced deportation of the population  actually took place, as well as for aggression against Armenia.  Without this document, Armenia had virtually no mechanisms to hold  Baku accountable.

On March 17, 2023, 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 its Armenian colleagues about the extremely negative  consequences for relations with Russia of 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 Russian leadership.