Russian President Putin arrives in Kyrgyzstan on a rare trip abroad

By The Associated Press

President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Kyrgyzstan on a rare trip abroad for the Russian leader who was indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Ukraine. It is the first time this year that the Russian president has traveled outside Russia and Russian-held territories of Ukraine. Earlier this year, Putin visited the partially occupied Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kherson, as well as the annexed Crimean Peninsula. In March, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin over the deportation of children from Ukraine. Countries that have signed and ratified the Rome Statute, which created the ICC, are now bound to arrest the Russian leader if he sets foot on their soil. Kyrgyzstan is not a signatory of the Rome Statute.