A bounty has been posted on the Russian President on Facebook by a Russian businessman. The bounty is for $1 million if any military officer apprehends the Russian president. The bounty has been posted on a picture of Putin that reads, “Dead or alive.” The Russian government has yet to comment on the bounty.
Russian businessman Konanykhin
A Russian businessman who defected to the U.S. in 1992 and now lives in the U.S. has offered Putin a bounty for his capture. He is a member of the “Circle of Money” and is a part of the television show “Unicorn Hunters.” He once was worth $300 million and was granted political asylum in the U.S. in 1999, but had his status revoked four years later. He was later reinstated after speaking out against the invasion of Ukraine.
After the fall of communism in Russia, Konanykhin had already started more than 100 companies. When he was 25, he decided to leave the country and seek asylum in the U.S. He was granted asylum in 1999 but had his status revoked four years later, and faced deportation to Russia.
FBI agents testified during the trial that the Russian mafia had placed a bounty on his head. He eventually fled to Hungary, the Czech Republic, and New York. However, he later claimed that the Russian government was threatening him, and had taken him hostage. He said he had illegally wired $8 million from the Russian Exchange Bank. But the Russian authorities claimed his version of events was a fabrication.
While Konanykhin denies putting a bounty on Putin’s head, he has offered a million dollars as reward for the arrest of the Russian leader as a war criminal. According to Vice News, Konanykhin has a personal wealth of $300 million.
The bounty was offered after Konanykhin, a Russian businessman who lives in the U.S., posted a photo of Putin on Facebook with a poster titled “Dead or Alive.” Facebook removed the post after complaints by Russian bots. But Konanykhin later posted another version of his message without the poster.
In a Facebook post dated July 18, Russian billionaire Alex Konanykhin put a $1 million bounty on Vladimir Putin’s head. The bounty is intended to be a deterrent for the Russian military to bring the Russian president to justice. Konanykhin said his bounty offer was a moral duty after the invasion of Ukraine. He also claims that he never asked for Putin to be killed.
Another conspiracy theory links Putin to the deadly 1999 apartment block explosions in St. Petersburg. The Russian government blamed the explosions on Chechen militants, but some historians and journalists have argued that Putin orchestrated the bombings. The explosions killed 300 people and triggered the Second Chechen War, which helped consolidate Putin’s political power in Russia. Another case involving Putin is that of Alexander Litvinenko, a former FSB officer who was killed in London in 2006 using polonium-210.
Russian oligarchs
The latest development in the anti-Russian sanctions war is a bipartisan bill introduced by senators on Tuesday. The legislation calls for the Treasury Department to offer cash rewards to those who can help the U.S. government track down Putin and his inner circle. The goal is to make Putin look like a loser, which would cause his fall from power.
Ric Prado, a former CIA operative, says there may be an opening if the Russian oligarchs want Putin to step aside. Prado has more than 20 years of experience in the Agency, and believes that his former colleagues could help Ukraine beat back Putin’s Russian army. In addition, Sen. Lindsey Graham says the best way to remove Putin is to use the Russian oligarchs as leverage and help Ukraine fight back.
The US and the EU are committed to pursuing the assets of Russian oligarchs. They also committed to boosting intelligence sharing and cooperation with other countries. They are also preparing to release a new alert advising financial institutions to report suspicious transactions involving Russian oligarchs.
Alex Konanykhin is a Russian oligarch who was in the United States when the Russian government invaded Ukraine. He was granted political asylum in the US in 1999, but his asylum was revoked four years later. He now faces deportation back to Russia.
The United States has just announced sanctions against certain Russian oligarchs and their family members. These oligarchs and their family members have contributed to Russia’s destabilizing foreign policy. The sanctions will severely restrict their travel and use of property in the U.S.
The United States has imposed sanctions on over 200 Russians since the start of the war in Ukraine. While the results of the sanctions have been mixed, the United States has attempted to impact the Russian financial elite by targeting the assets they keep abroad. The effect of these targeted sanctions on the Russian oligarchs is still unclear.
A Russian businessman has posted a $1 million bounty on the head of Vladimir Putin. According to Vice News, Konanykhin has made it clear that the bounty is intended to catch Putin as a war criminal, and is willing to pay any officer who can help in the pursuit of the oligarch. However, it is unclear exactly how the money Konanykhin has accumulated will be used.
International criminal court
While the ICC warrant against Putin is an important step toward restoring international peace and justice, many object to the idea of prosecuting the Russian leadership. These people argue that a Russian trial would not end the war or bring world peace, and that it would be a distraction. However, such criticism misunderstands the role of international law and accountability. The purpose of accountability is not to achieve perfect deterrence, but to end impunity and achieve justice.
Prosecutors should pursue charges against Russian leaders for war crimes and aggression. Such charges could reach Putin’s top ministers, as well as the president of Russia. If the ICC is successful in prosecuting these leaders, it would send Russia into international isolation. In addition, such a case could also change the attitude toward war in Russia. This is an example of the importance of international law in preventing and ending war.
Moreover, the ICC does not have its own police force, and so a prosecution requires the defendant to turn himself in or be arrested by a state willing to hand him over. This scenario has been illustrated by the pursuit of Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir. While the ICC began its pursuit of al-Bashir in 2009, he managed to escape to Saudi Arabia and Egypt in 2015. The Saudis and Egypt refused to turn over the fugitive dictator to the ICC.
Putin’s alleged involvement in the invasion of Ukraine is an area of investigation for the ICC. However, no proof has been provided to prove that Putin is responsible for those crimes. The ICC chief prosecutor believes that the actions in Ukraine constitute crimes against humanity. In addition, the ICC also plans to conduct a war crime investigation.
If the ICC is unable to prosecute the Russian leader for war crimes, the court could seek to prosecute the Russian leader for an offence of “waging an aggressive war” – an unjustified invasion and conflict. While Russia is not a member of the ICC, the UN Security Council could ask the court to investigate the allegations. However, Russia would have the right to veto any request by the UN.
Despite the ICC’s efforts to prosecute Putin, the court is unlikely to act on its own judgment. The court only has jurisdiction over aggression crimes if both parties are signatories to the Rome Statute and the Kampala Amendments to the Rome Statute. As a result, Russia will probably not agree to the ICC’s demands.
As the ICC’s Prosecutor, Nadia Banteka should stay focused on her legal duties and avoid politicizing the case. Anything else will only serve to fuel the growing opposition to the ICC.
