CYIL vol. 13 (2022)

CYIL 13 ȍ2022Ȏ IS IT POSSIBLE TO PROSECUTE THE HEAD OF STATE? IS IT POSSIBLE TO PROSECUTE THE HEAD OF STATE? 1 Katarína Šmigová Abstract : The article aims to analyse possibilities of prosecution of a head of state while in office from the point of view of international law. The focus is given to the international law framework created by international customs specifying immunities of high state officials and international treaties, namely the Rome Statute that has established the International Criminal Court. The article distinguishes international criminal responsibility and international criminal prosecutability. Finally, the article aims to explain why the situation in the case of the Serbian president and the Sudanese president was different and under which conditions prosecutability of Vladimir Putin might be a legally workable solution. Resumé : Článok analyzuje možnosti stíhania hlavy štátu vo funkcii z pohľadu medziná rodného práva. Dôraz sa kladie na medzinárodnoprávny rámec vytvorený medzinárodnými obyčajami, ktoré upravujú imunity najvyšších štátnych predstaviteľov a medzinárodnými zmluvami, konkrétne Rímskym štatútom, ktorý zriadil Medzinárodný trestný súd. Článok rozlišuje medzinárodnú trestnú zodpovednosť a medzinárodnú trestnú stíhateľnosť. Na koniec si článok kladie za cieľ vysvetliť, prečo bola situácia v prípade srbského prezidenta a sudánskeho prezidenta odlišná a za akých podmienok by mohla byť stíhateľnosť Vladimíra Putina právne prijateľným riešením. Key words : immunities of high state representative; crimes under international law; ICC; Rome Statute About the Author : Katarína Šmigová is an associate professor at the Department of International and European Law, Faculty of Law, Pan European University in Bratislava. Her research focuses on a position of an individual within international law therefore it includes several areas of international criminal law (LL.M in International Criminal Law), international human rights law (Dîplome, International Institute of Human Rights, Strasbourg) and international humanitarian law (Course on International Humanitarian Law for University Teachers, International Committee of the Red Cross, Genève). She is a member of the International Humanitarian Fact-Finding Commission, American Society of International Law, and a committee member of the Slovak Society of International Law, nevertheless, the views and opinions in the article are presented solely in the author’s personal capacity. 1. Introduction One of the high representatives of each state is the Head of State. Together with the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, they belong to a special group of state officials who have a specific position also at the level of international law. For example, on the basis of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, which largely codified international customary law, they can conclude an international treaty on behalf of the state without further ado. 2 The peculiarity of their position was also recognized by the International Court of Justice in its

1 This work was supported by the Slovak Research and Development Agency under the contract No. APVV-20-0567. 2 Art. 7(2) of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, adopted on 23 May 1969, UNTS vol. 1155, p. 331.

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