Putin Makes First Foreign Trip Since ICC Warrant For Summit Skipped By Armenia's Pashinyan

Russian President Vladimir Putin has touched down in Kyrgyzstan in his first foreign trip since the issuance of his arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The leader will participate in a summit of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

• Putin had earlier skipped the more important BRICS Summit in South Africa and the G20 Summit in India. While South Africa is a signatory to the Rome Statute and would be obliged to detain Putin, India would not be under any such obligation.
• During his visit to Kyrgyzstan, Putin will hold bilateral engagements with his local counterpart Sadyr Japarov as well as Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev and Tajik leader Emomali Rahmon, besides attending the CIS Summit on Friday.
• Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will skip the CIS Summit amid his country's deteriorating relations with Russia, which failed to enforce the Nagorno-Karabakh cease-fire agreement it brokered, leading to the takeover of the region by Azerbaijan.
• Armenia's absence marks another step in its geopolitical pivot away from Russia, with Yerevan deciding not to participate in a Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) military drills earlier this month.