The Russian government has submitted a draft law to the lower house of parliament that will allow the deployment of troops in other countries to protect Russian citizens who have been arrested or persecuted by court decisions, according to a document published in the electronic database of the State Duma, as reported by LETA citing DW.
The explanatory note to the draft law states that amendments are proposed to Article 6 of the Federal Law 'On Citizenship of the Russian Federation' and Article 10 of the Federal Law 'On Defense'. According to the authors, this is necessary 'to protect the rights of Russian citizens in the event of their arrest (detention), criminal or other prosecution' based on decisions of foreign or international courts that have jurisdiction without the participation of Russia or acting outside the framework of international treaties with Russia or relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council.
The document provides that for the protection of Russian citizens abroad, extraterritorial use of armed forces may be authorized by the president. According to sources from the RBC agency, the government commission on legislative activities has already approved this draft amendment.
On December 29, 2025, the head of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, signed a law allowing the non-execution of foreign court decisions on the territory of Russia, including those of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and special tribunals.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova, the commissioner for children's rights under the president of Russia. Court prosecutors suspect them of the illegal deportation of children from occupied territories of Ukraine. Russia signed the Rome Statute, on the basis of which the ICC operates, in 2000, but has not ratified it and withdrew its signature in 2016.
