On March 17, 2023, the International Criminal Court’s Hague headquarters issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges of illegal transfer of children from the Ukrainian occupied territory, which was considered a war crime. The warrant was not signed by anyone but was applied by Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan and then approved by four judges in the second chamber of the pre-trial court: Rosario Salvatore Etara from Italy, Sergio Hernando Ugardi Godinez from Costa Rica, the Red Hat of Japan and the President of Poland Pietro Hoffmannski.
The ICC, which was originally established in 2002 under the Rome Statute, specialized in the international case of genocide and war crimes, but it from the beginning to the end has a bit of Western taste, the United States and Russia have not officially joined, Russia signed in 2000 but withdrew in 2016, the United States has just signed without approval.
The arrest came out, and the global media burst out. The Ukrainian side was upset, feeling that it could finally give Russia a look. But the Russian side? The reaction was as fast as long as it would have been. Only three days on March 20, the Russian Federal Investigation Committee filed a criminal case against these ICC officials, alleging that they illegally interfered in domestic affairs. Then the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs began a warrant. The first was on May 19, taking hands on Karim Khan and Ithala, throwing their photos and personal information on the internet, accused of violating international law. The Khan, who was born in 1970 as a Pakistani, then came to Cambridge, to study international criminal law, and in 2021, before the ICC chief prosecutor, who had been in charge of the Rwandah massacre, was
Two months later, on July 27, the Japanese judge, born in 1962, graduated from the Law School of the University of Tokyo, graduated from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, worked in the United Nations Court in 2010 and entered the ICC in 2021. She signed Putin's arrest warrant and directly entered the Russian search list. On the website of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, her documents are hanging, and below are listed charges.
He was also appointed on September 25, 1953, was born in Poland, had a PhD in Law at the University of Warsaw, served in the 1980s at the Supreme Court of Poland, joined the ICC in 2015 and became president in 2021. The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs directly listed him as a wanted prisoner, accusing him of approving the arrest warrant as president. The term of office of Hoffmannsky ended in March 2024, but this caused him a lot more trouble in the second half.
The title says "three KGB interrogation orders", in fact KGB is the old Soviet intelligence agency, now Russia is used by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the FSB, meaning almost the Russian official interrogation order. The three judges, Etala, Rakhine and Hofmannsky, are the first to be named. Etala was an Italian born in 1961, early years as an assistant prosecutor of Milan, broke the mafia case, entered the ICC in 2014 and became the head of the pre-trial department. Russia handed over him in May, and he continued to work in the ICC, but traveled to avoid Russia and its ally countries. UGARDO GODINES is a Costa Rican, born in 1958, international law doctor, entered the ICC in 2017, specializing in the African conflict. By October
To put it bluntly, this wave of Russian operations is a tit for tat. You issue an arrest warrant for my president, and I issue an arrest warrant to your officials. The Federal Investigating Committee first filed a case and then executed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The list includes not only these five names, but also others related to the Maria Livova-Belova case. By the end of 2023, Russia will have several ICC officials wanted. The United Nations Human Rights Office expressed deep concern on October 13, and the Presidium of the Assembly of States Parties to the Rome Statute also condemned Russia's actions. However, these statements sound powerful, but what is their practical effect? Basically equals zero. As soon as a powerful country works, the words of international organizations become the background.
Moving to 2024, this matter will not stop. Tomoko Akane was elected as the new ICC president on March 12, with a term that will expire in 2027. She signed an arrest warrant for Putin and is still wanted, but her position has been promoted and her responsibilities are even greater. The ICC continues to advance the Ukraine case, with the scope of the investigation starting on November 21, 2013 and covering the entire territory. However, it is as difficult to actually implement Putin's arrest warrant. On September 4, 2024, he also went to Mongolia, which is a member of the ICC and it is reasonable to arrest people, but the Mongolian government handled it low-key and no movement occurred. Putin just came and went freely, and the arrest warrant would at most save him from flying a few times if he connected to the BRICS summit via video.
Let's talk about the current situation of these judges. By September 2025, all five people are still working at their posts. Khan continues to lead the investigation team, review reports and expand the chain of evidence in the Ukraine case. Aittala presided over the Pre-Trial Chamber, which tried other war crimes. When Ugard Godines returned to Costa Rica, he also had to pay attention to bank transactions. Although he was not directly wanted, the entire atmosphere was affected. As president, Akane manages the daily life of the ICC and also handles arrest warrants related to the Middle East in November 2024. Hoffmansky's term is over, but his name is still on the Russian list, and he is expected to keep a low profile after retirement.
Fortunately, things are not over. On February 6, 2025, the Trump administration of the United States signed executive order EO14203 to put pressure on the ICC. The first thing to bear was Khan. Freeze his assets in the United States and ban him and his family from entering the country. The root cause of this operation by the United States was that it had done to former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda during Trump's first term in 2020, and now it is restarting the old practice. The reason is that the ICC is investigating U.S. actions in Afghanistan or something, but now it is taking advantage of the Putin case to clean up the sweat. On May 15, media reported that the sanctions suspended ICC's work for a while and employees were unable to travel normally. Khan was attacked from front to back. Russia wanted and the United States sanctioned it. It was difficult for international prosecutors to do this.
On August 20, the U.S. State Department added, expanding the sanctions to four ICC officials, including Ethala, Ugald Godines, Eckharton and another court judge. The Treasury Department executed, bank accounts frozen, travel ban. CNN that this puts the ICC's senior level in danger, and the budget is also affected. The 79 member states of the Rome Statute jointly opposed, protested in Brussels, but the Trump administration did not fly, and the press secretary briefing said it was to protect U.S. interests. The European Parliament also asked the European Commission on June 5 that the sanctions had an impact on international justice, and that the response could be just diplomatic orders.
The ICC was built for global justice, but as soon as the great powers hit, it was disclosed. Russia did not recognize the accounts, the United States did not obey, the arrest warrant became a political code. In the case of Putin, children transferred this matter, Ukraine said more than 16,000 children were taken, the US-backed organization estimated 6,000 people, Russia a bite was humanitarian evacuation, pulled from the war zone to safety. The Red Cross report has data, the boundaries can be blurred, the ICC evidence chain has also been questioned.
In the end, this reminds everyone that in international relations, don’t be too naive. A paper arrest warrant, in exchange for a bunch of searches, Putin sits on the fishing table, and the ICC continues to struggle. On September 19, 2025, now, the storm is not spread, what about the future, who knows? but at least, these judges are still insisting, the court lights are still shining.