MOSCOW, November 16. /TASS/. Armenia ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) out of political considerations, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters.

"Despite all warnings, particularly against the backdrop of the anti-Russian policies <…> unleashed by the West against our country and officials, Yerevan made the decision to ratify [the Rome Statute] out of purely political motives," she said.

Zakharova added that Russia held bilateral consultations with Yerevan, suggesting that the country employ the existing practice of using ICC mechanisms without ratifying the Rome Statute, but "the suggested compromises were ignored."

On March 17, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the Russian presidential commissioner for children's rights, on charges of alleged involvement in war crimes, such as "illegal deportation of the population," including children, and their illegal transfer to Russia.

On March 20, Russia’s Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against ICC Prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan and judges Rosario Salvatore Aitala, Sergio Gerardo Ugalde Godinez and Tomoko Akane for taking knowingly illegal action, as there were no grounds for bringing the Russian president and children's ombudsman to criminal responsibility.