Tehran (IP)- The Russian president made a surprise visit to Mariupol, state media reported Sunday, the trip comes after an arrest warrant was issued for him by the International Criminal Court.

Iran PressEurope: In his first visit to the city since it was captured, Vladimir Putin flew to Mariupol by helicopter on Saturday and took a tour of the city, at times driving a car, state news agency TASS reported. 

Reports of the Mariupol visit came a day after the Russian leader traveled to Crimea to mark the ninth anniversary of the Black Sea peninsula’s annexation from Ukraine. Russian state TV also showed him visiting the Black Sea port city of Sevastopol on Saturday, accompanied by the local Moscow-appointed governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev.

Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 following a referendum that was not recognized by Kyiv and the international community.

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