Russian President Vladimir Putin will not travel to Rome to attend the funeral of Pope Francis, the Kremlin said on Tuesday.
When a news reporter asked Putin if he had plans to attend the funeral on Saturday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “No, the president has no such plan.”
He added that Moscow has not yet decided who will represent Russia at the funeral.
National and government leaders from around the world are expected to travel to Rome to attend funerals at the Vatican and Francis Cathedral, including U.S. President Donald Trump.
Putin’s attendance is always considered impossible. However, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Ukrainian children after he kidnapped Ukrainian children in 2023. Moscow calls the incident an evacuation.
If the Russian president travels to Rome, the Italian authorities will be obliged to arrest him because the country is a signatory to the Roman regulations, the founding document of the International Criminal Court.
Putin expressed his condolences after the Pope’s death on Monday, expressing his appreciation for “the dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the constructive cooperation between Russia and the Holy See”.
