Vladimir Putin visits allies in Kyrgyzstan, despite arrest warrant
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Kyrgyzstan on Thursday for a meeting with some of his few remaining allies, his first trip abroad since he was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the "deportation" of Ukrainian children.
The Russian president, who has withdrawn from several international summits due to the arrest warrant, is unlikely to be arrested during this trip, as the Central Asian country close to Moscow has not ratified the Rome Statute, the founding treaty of the Court.
Putin arrived in Kyrgyzstan, Russian and Kyrgyz news agencies announced Thursday morning.
He will hold talks on Thursday with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, their first talks since Baku's victory in Nagorno-Karabakh, while Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, whose relations with Moscow have been strained, will be absent.
Vladimir Putin will also hold talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov during this visit, which coincides with the 20th anniversary of the opening of the Russian military base in Kant, Kyrgyzstan.
On Friday, the Russian president will attend a summit of former Soviet countries, in the presence of his main ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, as well as more sceptical leaders of the Ukraine invasion, such as Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
Vladimir Putin, who launched Russia's assault on Ukraine in February 2022, is the subject of an ICC arrest warrant from March, a decision that Moscow considers "null and void."
Translation by Iurie Tataru
