There are "reasonable grounds" to believe that Putin bears criminal responsibility for the transfer of children from occupied territories of Ukraine to Russia, which could be considered a war crime. The ICC announced that in a statement on Friday.
Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia's child rights commissioner, has also had an arrest warrant issued against her.
How many children have been transferred across the border to Russia is not yet clear, but according to a review by several European public service broadcasters, including Swedish Radio, there are at least 400 children.
Russia: "No importance"
The Presidential Office of Ukraine hailed the announcement from the ICC in a statement. "This is just the beginning," one writes on Telegram.
From the Russian side, the arrest warrant is completely dismissed.
"The decision of the International Criminal Court has no significance for our country, even from a legal point of view," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova wrote on Telegram.
Neither Russia nor Ukraine are members of the ICC.
The ICC does not normally have trials in anyone's absence, nor do they have a police force to arrest Putin in Russia, Carl Fridh Kleberg points out.
"In this way, at least in the short term, it is a symbolic thing, but it is also a big symbolic thing and an important step.
Billström: Very important investigation
During a press conference on the NATO process on Friday, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M) commented on the arrest warrant against Putin.
I assume that anyone who has committed crimes in connection with Russia's aggression against Ukraine will be brought to justice in due course.
Sweden can contribute within the framework of the country's participation in the ICC, Billström emphasized.
"There is a long list of people who need to be held accountable for this and Sweden will do everything we can to ensure that this is the case.