Hague-based global Criminal Court announced the arrest warrants in a statement on Tuesday.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for top Russian commanders Sergei Kobylash and Viktor Sokolov over alleged war crimes in Ukraine.
Hague-based global Criminal Court announced the arrest warrants in a statement on Tuesday.
The two top officers, serving as the commanders of Russia’s Long-Range Aviation and Black Sea Fleet respectively,
The court said there were reasonable grounds to believe the two top officers, serving as the commanders of Russia’s Long-Range Aviation and Black Sea Fleet respectively, were responsible for "missile strikes carried out by the forces under their command against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure from at least 10 October 2022 until at least 9 March 2023."
The alleged crimes are said to have taken place during a campaign of missile strikes “against the Ukrainian electric infrastructure from at least 10 October 2022 until at least 9 March 2023,” the court claimed.
The Hague-based tribunal has repeatedly taken hostile steps against Moscow amid the Ukraine conflict, most notably by issuing an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin last spring.
Putin is accused of “unlawful deportation” of Ukrainian children to Russia.
Moscow has rebuffed the ICC claims, stating that the children in question were merely evacuated from the warzone, and could be returned to Ukraine should their legal guardians request it.
Russia has also taken retaliatory steps against the ICC itself, launching a criminal case against the court’s principal prosecutor and judges, ultimately issuing arrest warrants against them.
Like many other countries, including the US, Moscow does not recognize the authority of the Hague-based tribunal and its actions have no legal validity in Russia.
The body has been repeatedly accused of being Eurocentric and biased towards the West.