Putin challenges international arrest warrant with Mongolia visit

The warrant puts the Mongolian government in a difficult position. After decades under communism with close ties to the Soviet Union, it transitioned to democracy in the 1990s and has built relations with the United States, Japan and other new partners.

But it remains economically dependent on its two much larger and more powerful neighbours, Russia and China. Russia supplies the landlocked country with most of its fuel and a sizeable amount of its electricity.

The ICC has accused Putin of being responsible for the abductions of children from Ukraine, where the fighting has raged for 2 years. Member countries are required by the court's founding treaty, the Rome Statute, to detain suspects if an arrest warrant has been issued, but Mongolia needs to maintain good relations with Russia and the court lacks a mechanism to enforce its warrants.