By Admin 
Poland has issued a stern warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin that his plane could be forcibly landed if he flies through Polish airspace to meet US President Donald Trump in Hungary. Poland’s Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in an interview that if the court orders, the government can arrest Putin and hand him over to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Polish court can order the plane to land!
Sikorski said, “I cannot say that an independent Polish court would not order the government to do this. If Putin’s plane passes over Poland, it could be brought down on a court order so that the suspect can be sent to The Hague.” He suggested that if the summit took place, Putin’s plane might have to take a different route to avoid Polish airspace.
ICC arrest warrant
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has already issued an arrest warrant against Putin. He is accused of illegally sending hundreds of children from Ukraine to Russia. Russia has refused to accept the jurisdiction of the ICC and described the charges as “political”. But Poland, which is an ICC member state, said it was bound to abide by the terms of the warrant.
What is Hungary’s stance?
At the same time, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that his country will guarantee Putin’s participation in the summit and his safe return. Hungary is one of the EU countries that maintains good relations with Russia and sometimes takes a different stance from the EU’s collective policy.
Bulgaria gave a different statement
Meanwhile, Bulgaria has said that it is ready to allow the use of its airspace if Putin is going to Hungary for peace talks. However, Bulgaria also clarified that no formal request for flight permission has come from Russia yet.
Discussion of Trump-Putin talks
Former US President Donald Trump recently said that he is planning to meet Putin in Budapest to end the Russia-Ukraine war. However, this meeting has not been confirmed yet by Russia. After Poland’s warning, it will be interesting to see which route Putin takes to reach Hungary if the meeting takes place.