(Brussels) -Tajikistan should deny entry to Russian President Vladimir Putin or arrest him if he enters the country, based on an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for him, Human Rights Watch said today. The Kremlin announced that Putin is planning to travel to Tajikistan on October 9, 2025, to attend a Russia-Central Asia summit and a meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
President Putin has been subject to arrest by the ICC since March 17, 2023, when the court's judges issued warrants against him and Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia's commissioner for children's rights, over war crimes of unlawful deportation and unlawful transfer of children from Ukraine to Russia and Russia-occupied areas of Ukraine.
"Putin should be in The Hague to face the charges against him, not attending summits hosted by an ICC member," said Liz Evenson, international justice director at Human Rights Watch. "If it welcomes Putin, Tajikistan will be showing utter disregard for the suffering of victims of Russian forces' crimes in Ukraine and for its own obligations as an ICC member."
Tajikistan joined the ICC in 2002. Under the ICC's founding treaty, Tajikistan has an obligation to cooperate with the court, including by arresting and surrendering any suspects who enter its territory. Tajikistan would be defying this obligation if it allows Putin to enter the country without arresting him. Without its own police force, the ICC must rely on states and the international community to assist in arrests.
Since the arrest warrant against Putin was issued, only one ICC member country, Mongolia, has hosted him, in September 2024. The visit was widely condemned, with states parties and regional organizations like the European Union speaking out in support of the court and registering their disappointment privately with Mongolian authorities.
On October 24, 2024, ICC judges determined that Mongolia had failed to fulfill its obligations as an ICC member by not arresting Putin and referred the matter to the ICC Assembly of States Parties for further action. The decision was confirmed on appeal. The assembly took note of the decision and decided to include issues of non-cooperation with the court as a standing item in the agenda for its future annual sessions.
In the past, ICC member countries haveavoided visits by individuals wanted by the court, including by relocating or rescheduling meetings or asking the government of the ICC suspect to send other representatives to meetings. In August 2023, Putin was expected to attend the annual leaders' summit for BRICS--a group of states that includes both South Africa and Russia--in Johannesburg. But his visit was ultimately cancelled following pressure by civil society and a South African court decision reaffirming South Africa's obligation to execute the ICC arrest warrant against him.
ICC members, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the European Union should urge the Tajik authorities to uphold their obligations under the court's treaty, Human Rights Watch said.
Along with forced deportation of Ukrainian civilians, including children, to Russia, Human Rights Watch has documented numerous violations by Russian forces since their 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine that should be investigated as potential war crimes. These include unlawful attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure; indiscriminate attacks including widespread use of prohibited weapons such as cluster munitions; and arbitrary detention, torture, and summary executions of civilians and of Ukrainian soldiers attempting to surrender. The court's investigations have, so far, yielded arrest warrants against six individuals on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Over recent years, Tajikistan's government has intensified its crackdown on dissent, jailing public figures, journalists, and bloggers. It also sought the deportation or extradition from other countries of people linked to a banned opposition party. Tajikistan's close economic and diplomatic ties with Russia have not protected Tajik labor migrants in Russia from escalating xenophobic harassment, arbitrary arrests, and deportations.
In April, a coalition of nongovernmental organizations and opposition groups filed a complaint with the ICC against President Emomali Rahmon and senior government officials. The complaint alleges that between 2002 and 2024, Tajikistan's government systematically committed crimes against humanity, including arbitrary detention, torture, sexual violence, forced deportations, disappearances, extrajudicial killings, targeting political opposition, and ethnic minorities.
"Allowing Putin's visit in breach of Tajikistan's ICC obligations would further damage the country's concerning human rights record," Evenson said. "Tajikistan's partners should press its authorities to uphold their commitment to support victims' access to justice through the court, regardless of who the alleged perpetrators are."
