International reactions continued in response to the International Criminal Court's issuance of an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, and while the decision was welcomed by the United States and Europe, Moscow considered it provocative and unacceptable.
Russian Kremlin presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the ICC's decision was provocative and unacceptable, and that Moscow did not recognize the court and its decisions had no legal value.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also said that the decision to issue a warrant for the arrest of President Putin is of no importance at all, noting that her country is not a member of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and has no responsibilities towards the court.
Russian Ambassador to the UN Security Council Vassily Nebenzia said Western countries were ignoring evidence of what he described as crimes committed by Ukraine.
Nebenzia stressed that Moscow is working to establish an international court, rooted in international law, to hold accountable Ukrainians and Westerners who committed crimes in Ukraine.
Commenting on Russia's rejection of the resolution, ICC spokesman Fadi al-Abdallah said that the decision is binding despite Russia's non-membership in the Rome Statute, adding – in a communication with Al Jazeera – that the court's jurisdiction includes violations committed on Ukrainian territory.
Biden considers ICC decision justified (Reuters)
Justified decision
The United States welcomed the issuance of the warrant against Putin, with President Joe Biden saying the ICC arrest warrant for the Russian president was justified "and that Putin clearly committed war crimes."
Biden added that although the United States is not a member of the court, its release of the memo marks a strong turning point.
Adriana Watson, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, was also quoted by Anadolu Agency as saying that there is no doubt that Russia is committing war crimes in Ukraine, stressing the need to hold those responsible accountable.
The Russian embassy in Washington commented on the US position on the arrest warrant for President Putin by saying that this reflects a state of schizophrenia, because Washington rejects the court's position when it criticizes it for its crimes, according to the embassy.
U.S. officials allow themselves to make unacceptable statements about President Putin, but are deliberately silent about the brutal atrocities their country has committed in Iraq and elsewhere.
European welcome
In the same context, the European Union announced its support for the decision of the International Criminal Court and its investigation, and foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said "there will be no room for impunity."
Borrell added that the court's decision is the beginning of the process of accountability, and holding Russian officials responsible for the crimes and atrocities they committed in Ukraine.
On the Ukrainian side, President Volodymyr Zelensky, in his evening speech on Friday, described the ICC's decision against Putin as historic.
Zelenskiy expressed gratitude to the ICC prosecutor's team Karim Khan, the ICC "and everyone in the world who helps Ukraine in the fight for justice."
President Putin and Russian Presidential Commissioner for the Rights of the Child Maria Belova (Reuters)
Alleged crimes
On Friday, the ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber II issued arrest warrants for Putin and Russian Presidential Commissioner for the Rights of the Child Maria Belova.
Karim Khan said the Russian president could be prosecuted "for alleged crimes at some point", adding that no one was exempt from accountability.
He stressed that no one should feel that they could act with impunity, commit acts of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes with impunity.
An ICC statement said there were reasonable grounds to hold the Russian president individually criminally responsible for crimes recorded in Ukraine since February 24 last year.