Japan on Friday lodged a formal protest against Russia’s request for the extradition of International Criminal Court (ICC) President Tomoko Akane, a Japanese national, from the Netherlands, describing the move as “unacceptable.”The protest came a day after Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office submitted extradition requests to the Netherlands, where the ICC is headquartered in The Hague, and several other countries for Akane and nine other ICC staff members.“Measures targeting individuals connected to the ICC are unjust and unacceptable. We regret that Russia made extradition requests to multiple countries nevertheless,” Japan’s deputy chief cabinet secretary Masanao Ozaki told reporters, according to the Associated Press.Tokyo would consider further action, including additional formal protests, Ozaki added.The requests followed Moscow’s issuance of arrest warrants for Akane and eight others in response to the ICC’s 2023 warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over the war in Ukraine. The Moscow City Court last year sentenced all nine in absentia to prison terms.Russia has accused the ICC of violating fundamental principles and norms of international law by issuing arrest warrants against Russian citizens without evidence, according to state news agency TASS.Relations between Japan and Russia have deteriorated since Putin visited the Kuril Islands, a Pacific island chain claimed by both countries, in August, marking his first visit to the archipelago. The Soviet Union seized the islands from Japan in the final days of World War II, and the dispute has prevented them from signing a peace treaty formally ending hostilities.Japan has also sought to balance its support for the ICC with its close ties to the United States, which opposes the court. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has faced domestic criticism over this balancing act.“We have consistently supported the ICC and will continue to do so,” Takaichi told parliament on Friday.Washington has accused the ICC of exceeding its mandate and imposed sanctions on Akane and about a dozen other court officials in retaliation for investigations into Israeli officials over the war in Gaza and probes into the conduct of US military personnel in Afghanistan.The sanctions freeze any assets held in US jurisdictions by those targeted and bar the officials and their family members from entering the United States.
