YEREVAN. June 16 (Interfax) - The Rome Statute will be sent by the Armenian government to parliament for ratification, the country's cabinet of ministers said on Friday.
"This legislative initiative [on Armenia's ratification of the Rome Statute] will be sent to parliament in the near future," the Armenian government told Interfax.
In April, Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan spoke against fast ratification by Yerevan of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, saying this step would be wrong in relation to Russia. "In my opinion, Armenia doesn't need to ratify the Rome Statute soon. You know, this wouldn't be a positive step toward Russia at all, and I don't understand its essence and efficiency," Simonyan said.
Armenia signed the Rome Statute in 1998. The Armenian government turned to the Constitutional Court regarding the compliance of the Rome Statute with the country's constitution in late 2022. On March 24, 2023, the Constitutional Court found the obligations envisaged by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court to be in compliance with the constitution.
Hakob Arshakyan, deputy speaker of the Armenian parliament, said on April 1 that Yerevan may sign an agreement with Moscow to stipulate that the Rome Statute of the ICC will not damage strategic relations between the two countries.
He also said the process of ratifying the Rome Statute is Yerevan's response to Azerbaijani aggression against the sovereign territories of Armenia, and in particular, to the military action carried out by Azerbaijani troops in September.
The Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court in March 2023 issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova. Moscow called the court decision illegal and null and void. The judges and prosecutor of the International Criminal Court involved in issuing that decision were placed on Russia's wanted list.
av sy iz