Papuashvili does not directly answer the question about Putin being a war criminal

Parliament speaker Shalva Papuashvili does not directly answer Mtavari Channel's question whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is a war criminal. The Hague International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin.

"We are in the Georgian parliament, which is not a court, but what Georgia can do is apply to the body that decides such matters," Papuashvili said.

Papuashvili said Georgia had signed an appeal to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on 2 March 2022, which he said resulted in a warrant being issued against Putin. He said the accusations by the Georgian government at the time that the Georgian Dream was not in solidarity with Ukraine were false. The journalist asked Papuashvili why he cannot directly say that Putin is a war criminal:

"We are in the parliament. The parliament is a legislative body. We pass laws here. Laws exist so that the courts can make decisions based on this law. I am trying to make you understand what I am telling you," Papuashvili said. 

For information, on March 17, the Hague International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin. A warrant was also issued for the arrest of Maria Lvova-Belova, the Children's Ombudsman. Moscow states that it does not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC