The Armenian parliament ratified Tuesday the founding statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), subjecting itself to the jurisdiction of the court in The Hague.
A spokeswoman for parliament said 60 deputies had voted to ratify the Rome Statute of the ICC and to adopt a statement on retroactive recognition of ICC jurisdiction, and 22 had voted against it.
The decision had been strongly opposed by Yerevan's formal ally Russia, with which ties have become badly strained over Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, and Azerbaijan's counterterror operations and recapture of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, once occupied by Armenian separatists.
Joining the ICC means Armenia will be obliged to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin if he sets foot there because the court has issued an arrest warrant for him on suspicion of illegally deporting hundreds or more children from Ukraine – a claim dismissed by the Kremlin as meaningless.
Armenia says it has been discussing its plans with Russia after Moscow warned it in March of "serious consequences" if it submitted to ICC jurisdiction.
Yerevan has said the move was intended to address issues related to its long-running conflict with Azerbaijan and is not aimed at Russia.
"We are creating additional guarantees for Armenia," Representative of Armenia on International Legal Matters Yeghishe Kirakosyan told lawmakers.
Moscow has nevertheless voiced increasing frustration with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has publicly said Armenia's policy of solely relying on Russia to guarantee its security was a mistake, and pointedly hosted joint maneuvers with U.S. forces.
Opposition parties, which control 36 seats in Armenia's 107-seat legislature protested the move and their MPs walked out from the plenary session.
