Russia said on Sunday that all decisions issued by the International Criminal Court are not legally binding on Russia and its president, commenting on the court's issuance of an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a decision that was praised by the United States and Europe.
A Kremlin statement added that the Russian Investigative Committee records all crimes committed by Kiev and may be used in the future before the judiciary.
In Germany, Justice Minister Marco Buschmann said his country would be forced to arrest Russian President Putin if he reached its territory.
Bushman said, according to a report by the German agency "Zeit", that if Putin arrives on German soil, the International Criminal Court will apply to Interpol to execute the arrest warrant.
In the first reaction, Russian Ambassador to Germany Sergei Nechaev expressed his country's concern about what he called irresponsible German statements in support of the International Criminal Court's decision against Putin, adding that they show a desire to further escalate the conflict with Moscow.
French praise for decision
In France, French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna told the weekly Le Journal de dimanche that the International Criminal Court's issuance on Friday of an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes in Ukraine was a "very important" decision.
"This decision is extremely important because it means that anyone responsible for war crimes or crimes against humanity must be held accountable regardless of their status or position," Colonna said in an interview.
"There is no link in the chain that can now think it will escape justice, and that should prompt many to think. So this decision could change the course of events."
On Friday, the International Criminal Court in The Hague, the Netherlands, issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges of committing a war crime in connection with the war in Ukraine.
The court called for Putin's arrest on suspicion of responsibility for the deportation of children and the illegal transfer of people from Ukraine to Russia since the start of the war on Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
The ICC's 123 member states must execute arrest warrants for Putin and Russian Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova Belova if they travel there.
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan told AFP when asked if Putin would be arrested if he set foot in any of those countries: "Yes, that's right."
Putin is the third head of state to be indicted by the International Criminal Court while still in power, having been preceded by former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who were indicted by the court while leading their countries. The charges against Gaddafi were dropped after he was overthrown and killed in 2011.