The Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to visit Mongolia on September 3, despite the country being a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which has issued an arrest warrant for him. This visit marks Putin’s first trip to a nation that is a member of the ICC since the court in The Hague issued the warrant in March 2023, in which he is accused of the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia and Russian-controlled territories.

On Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that there are “no concerns” regarding the upcoming visit, according to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti. The visit is at the invitation of Mongolia’s President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh. “We have a wonderful dialogue with our friends from Mongolia,” Peskov said.

Under the Rome Statute, which serves as the foundation for the ICC, member countries are obligated to detain individuals for whom an arrest warrant has been issued if they enter their territory. However, the court does not have any enforcement mechanism. The arrest warrant against Putin is the first issued for a leader of one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Since the issuance of the warrant, Putin has avoided travel to ICC member states. Last year, he skipped a summit of the BRICS group in Johannesburg, where he was expected to attend, following requests from South Africa to avoid diplomatic repercussions. South Africa, which is also an ICC member, had lobbied Moscow for months to prevent Putin from attending the meeting, and the parties reached a “mutual agreement.” Instead, Putin participated via video link, during which he made strong criticisms of the West.

Armenia has previously caused irritation in Russia due to its decision to join the ICC, leading to increasing tensions between the former allies. However, Armenian officials quickly assured Russia that Putin would not be arrested if he visited the country.

Mongolia signed the Rome Statute in 2000 and ratified it in 2002. The Kremlin has announced that Putin will hold talks with Khurelsukh and other senior Mongolian officials and will participate in ceremonial events marking the 85th anniversary of the joint victory of Soviet and Mongolian armed forces over Japanese militarists at the Khalkhin Gol River.