Putin visits Crimea to mark anniversary of annexation as Ukraine grain deal is renewed

• Published date: 18 March 2023

Putin visited an art school and a children's centre on Saturday, the day after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for the Russian leader, accusing him of war crimes

The court specifically accused him on Friday of bearing personal responsibility for the abduction of children from Ukraine during Russia's full-scale invasion of the country, which started almost 13 months ago.

Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move that most of the world considered illegal.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has demanded that Russia withdraw from the peninsula as well as the areas it has occupied since last year.

Putin has shown no intention of relinquishing the Kremlin's gains. Instead, he stressed on Friday the importance of holding Crimea.

"Obviously, security issues take top priority for Crimea and Sevastopol now," he said, referring to Crimea's largest city.

"We will do everything needed to fend off any threats."

The ICC's arrest warrant was the first issued against a leader of one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

The court, which is based in The Hague, Netherlands, also issued a warrant for the arrest of Maria Lvova-Belova, the commissioner for children's rights in the office of the president of the Russian Federation.

The move was immediately dismissed by Moscow and welcomed by Ukraine as a major breakthrough.

Its practical implications, however, could be limited as the chances of Putin facing trial at the ICC are highly unlikely because Moscow does not recognise the court's jurisdiction or extradite its nationals.

China's support is crucial for Putin, giving Xi leverage in encouraging Putin to enter peace talks

Meanwhile, a deal allowing the export of Ukrainian grain from Black Sea ports that was due to expire on Saturday has been renewed, Turkey's president Tayyip Erdogan said, while a Ukrainian government minister said the extension had been agreed for 120 days.

"The deal for the grain corridor was due to expire today. As a result of our talks with the two sides, we have secured an extension to this deal," Erdogan said in a speech in the western city of Canakkale, without specifying the length of the agreed extension.

Ukrainian minister for infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov said the deal had been extended for 120 days.

The pact was brokered with Russia and Ukraine by the United Nations and Turkey in July – and renewed for a further 120 days in November – to combat a global food crisis that was...