[7] According to Armenian Justice Minister Grigor Minasyan, the Rome Statute would apply to Armenia retroactively from 12 May 2021, when a border crisis with Azerbaijan began, in the hopes of filing proceedings against the latter for alleged war crimes.
Although the government claimed that the move to create additional guarantees for Armenia in response to Azerbaijani aggression, it was also seen as a sign of worsening relations with Russia, whose president, Vladimir Putin, is wanted by the court on charges of war crimes in the invasion of Ukraine.
[11] On 14 October 2023, Armenian president Vahagn Khachaturyan formally approved the country joining the International Criminal Court.
[2] On 8 February 2024, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said the following at the ceremony of Armenia's accession to the International Criminal Court in The Hague: "ICC's role in crime prevention and ensuring fair and impartial justice process for peaceful resolution of conflicts is significant.
In our region, where we have been confronted by proliferation of conflicts we are convinced that the Rome Statute among other legal mechanisms has real potential to prevent further escalation and atrocities.