Criminal Justice
Moscow’s military should free prisoners abroad in the future
Updated March 20, 2026 – 1:02 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
Russia’s military doctrine already allows operations to protect its citizens abroad. The armed forces should soon be able to free imprisoned Russians. Kremlin chief Putin decides.
In the future, the Russian armed forces should also be able to free the country’s citizens imprisoned abroad if, in the opinion of Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, they have been wrongly convicted. This provides for a change in the law, which should now be adopted with priority in the State Duma, as head of parliament Vyacheslav Volodin said. It’s about “strengthening the protection of the rights of our citizens against the actions of unfriendly states,” said Volodin. The adoption of the change in the law, which has already been approved by the government, is considered a formality.
The legal system in the West has finally discredited itself, explained Volodin, who is a close confidante of Putin. The head of the Kremlin himself is wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague because of allegations of war crimes in Ukraine. If Putin or other citizens of the country are wrongly convicted and imprisoned from the perspective of the Moscow power apparatus, an army deployment to free them should be possible in the future.
Moscow’s military doctrine has already allowed the use of the armed forces to protect its own citizens abroad – such as in the war of aggression against Ukraine ordered by Putin in 2022, where many residents in the east of the country had received Russian passports. Now the “protection” should also apply to those who are detained, arrested or otherwise prosecuted based on decisions of foreign courts or international judicial authorities without Russia’s involvement.
In the confrontation with the West, Putin also signed a law according to which judgments from foreign courts will not be recognized or implemented if they contradict Russia’s interests. For example, after its falling out with the Council of Europe, Russia no longer adheres to the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights. Russia also does not recognize the Criminal Court in The Hague as a legal authority.
