We Have Heard the Concerns from Russia: Armenian Deputy Speaker on the Future of the Rome Statute

Armenia has listened to the concerns raised by the Russian Federation and will ensure that the further progression regarding the Rome Statute does not harm the strategic relations between Armenia and Russia. This was stated by the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Hakob Arshakyan, in an interview with Armenpress.

“Mr. Arshakyan, following the Constitutional Court's ruling on March 24 confirming that the Rome Statute complies with Armenia's Constitution, there was great uproar in Armenia, Russia, and international media, suggesting this was Armenia's response to the International Criminal Court’s issuance of arrest warrants against the President of Russia. How do you comment on this?”

“I believe the best answer to the question is given by the timeline. The Armenian government approved the draft law on the ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, signed on July 17, 1998, and the declaration recognizing the jurisdiction of the Court retroactively on December 29, 2022, during a public session. The issue was presented live by the Minister of Justice, Grigor Minasyan. It has been explicitly recorded that this is Armenia's response to acts of aggression by Azerbaijan against Armenia's sovereign territories, particularly regarding the war crimes committed by Azerbaijani servicemen during the September aggression. The ratification of the Rome Statute will enable Armenia to address the responsibility for the heinous crimes committed by Azerbaijani servicemen in the International Criminal Court.”

“Continuing with the timeline, let me emphasize that the government submitted the issue to the Constitutional Court for discussion on January 3. The International Criminal Court published its decision regarding the President of Russia on March 17. The Armenian Constitutional Court issued its ruling three months after discussions, on March 24. Furthermore, according to Armenian legislation, the Constitutional Court was required to make a decision within three months. That ruling is exclusively legal and addresses only one question: whether the obligations under the Rome Statute are compatible with Armenia’s Constitution. I must note that the ruling does not recognize anyone as guilty regarding any issue, nor does it demand the arrest of anyone. Naturally, the Armenian government in December 2022 could not have predicted or anticipated the specific decisions that the International Criminal Court would make in March.”

“However, a member of the ruling coalition stated that following the ratification of the Rome Statute, if the President of Russia visits Armenia, he would be arrested.”

“Prior to the ruling coalition member’s statement, similar reports circulated in the Russian media. This does not mean that the Russian media was expressing its desires through this. I believe our coalition member was influenced by publications from Russian media and social networks, which I regret. Naturally, the ruling party and team has no such intent or desire.”

“Yet, the issue remains that if the Rome Statute is ratified, this will be inevitable.”

“That is a misunderstanding, as today we already have a signed agreement with another country that stipulates the Rome Statute will not impact our bilateral relations. Such arrangements could also be made with Russia. But this is just one of the options. One thing is clear: we have heard the concerns from the Russian Federation, and I believe we can arrange for the further progression regarding the Rome Statute not to harm the strategic relations between Armenia and Russia.”