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ICC not to touch Kiev regime as long as it acts as its ‘toy’ — envoy

"We stand against a strictly established coalition. A coalition, built upon financial mechanisms, military mechanisms, meaning the IMF, the dollar, the NATO - all this cements this coalition, which acts on directions from Washington," the diplomat added

MOSCOW, August 21. /TASS/. The International Criminal Court (ICC) will not punish the Kiev regime for its crimes while it acts as its "toy," Russian Ambassador-at-large Rodion Miroshnik said on the Soloviev.Live TV channel, commenting on Ukraine’s ratification of the Rome Statute.

"There were told clearly: guys, the ICC will not punish you, because this is not a real court, not a fair court, it’s a kangaroo court. This is the court, where we [the West - TASS] order, and it persecutes. So far, we will not order you [the Kiev regime - TASS], because you are our toy, so we will amuse ourselves with this toy, and you also need to join the ICC, so that we could go to meetings, together with other ‘rattles.’ This is what basically happens on the international arena," he said.

"We stand against a strictly established coalition. A coalition, built upon financial mechanisms, military mechanisms, meaning the IMF, the dollar, the NATO - all this cements this coalition, which acts on directions from Washington," the diplomat added.

Previously, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine voted to ratify the ICC’s Rome Statute, but with an amendment that excludes Ukrainians from prosecution for war crimes.

About the ICC

The ICC was established by the 1998 Rome Statute. In total, 123 countries are currently parties to the document. The court, based in The Hague, has branches in the countries where investigations are underway.

Ukraine signed the Rome Statute back on January 20, 2000, but never ratified it even though it was obliged to do so under the 2014 EU association agreement.

The countries that are not parties to the Rome Statute include Russia (signed but did not ratify it), the US (signed it but later revoked its signature) and China (never signed it). In 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an executive order saying that the country would not become a party to the ICC. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, "the ICC has failed to live up to expectations and has not become a truly independent body of international justice.".

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