MOSCOW

The Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday got the government's approval for introducing a bill to parliament allowing for the use of the armed forces abroad to protect Russian citizens persecuted by foreign courts.

According to the explanatory note, "the draft law has been developed in order to protect the rights of citizens of the Russian Federation in the event of their arrest, detention, criminal, and other prosecution pursuant to decisions of courts of foreign states," as well as other courts and international judicial bodies whose competence is not based on an international treaty with Russia or a UN Security Council resolution.

Currently, under existing legislation, the decision to use the Russian army abroad is made by President Vladimir Putin in cases where the actions of other states contradict Russia's interests.

The legislative initiative appeared approximately two months after the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, who were indicted by a US court previous to that.

Putin and Russia's Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova are also wanted by the International Criminal Court in connection with the Ukrainian conflict.