(Adnkronos) – Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are leaving the International Criminal Court. The three countries, with military juntas in power against which there are accusations and close ties with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, on whom an ICC arrest warrant is pending in relation to the conflict in Ukraine, have announced their immediate withdrawal, branding it as a “tool of neocolonial repression”. In a joint statement reported by the BBC, they state that they will not recognize its authority. “The International Criminal Court has proven itself incapable of managing and prosecuting proven war crimes, crimes against humanity, crimes of genocide and crimes of aggression,” they state in the statement.
The British network underlines how a country’s withdrawal officially takes effect one year after notification to the UN. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, united under the Alliance of Sahel States (Aes), withdrew from the Ecowas regional bloc earlier this year. Among the least developed in the world despite the abundance of natural resources, the three countries say they want to establish a “local mechanism for the consolidation of peace and justice”.
