The Hague Court rebuts Lula and says Brazil has an obligation to cooperate

After Lula (PT) generated controversy by stating that the Russian dictator, Vladimir Putin, would have free transit in Brazil despite being the target of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for a war crime in Ukraine, a spokesperson for The international court said that Brazil has an obligation to cooperate with Putin’s arrest, as the country is one of the signatories of the Rome Statute, which gave rise to the ICC, also known as the Hague Court.

Heard by the newspaper Metrópoles, the Court’s spokesperson, Fadi Elabdallah, said that he would not comment on Lula’s direct statements, but confirmed Brazil’s obligation to comply with the international Court’s determinations.

Last Saturday (9), when giving an interview to an Indian channel, Lula stated that Putin could “easily” come to Brazil for the G20 Summit next year without risk of arrest.

“If I am president of Brazil, and if he (Putin) comes to Brazil, there is no way he will be arrested. No one will disrespect Brazil”, said the PT member at the time.

After damaging Brazil’s image with the declaration, Lula again generated controversy this Monday (11), when he said that he will study the possibility of Brazil leaving the group of 123 countries that are signatories to the international criminal treaty.

The PT member also acknowledged that it is not up to him or Congress to decide on Putin’s eventual arrest, but questioned the composition and authority of the Hague Court.

The International Criminal Court was created in 1998 and began operating in July 2002 based on the Rome Statute, which dealt with the creation of a permanent international court to act independently. Based in The Hague, Netherlands, the Court is responsible for investigating and prosecuting people accused of genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and aggression against other countries.