In a recent announcement, the Presidency confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be present at the upcoming BRICS summit in South Africa, scheduled for next month.
Also read: ‘Arresting Putin would be a declaration of war,’ reveals Ramaphosa
According to the statement released by the Presidency, this decision was reached ‘by mutual agreement.’ Instead of President Putin, Foreign Minister Mr Sergey Lavrov will represent the Russian Federation during the summit.
The absence of President Putin comes in the wake of an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant issued for his alleged involvement in war crimes during the invasion of Ukraine. The ICC warrant poses a significant legal concern for South Africa, as the country is obligated to arrest any individual subject to an ICC warrant if they were to enter its borders.
Given these circumstances, the decision for President Putin to forego the BRICS summit in South Africa is likely a diplomatic measure to avoid any potential legal implications.
Ramaphosa said that the government had ‘obvious problems’ with executing an arrest warrant for Putin.
‘Russia has made it clear that the arrest of President Putin would be a declaration of war against Russia,’ he said. ‘The International Criminal Court (ICC) itself has expressed concern over Russia’s nuclear threat, following the arrest warrant. South Africa has no capacity to declare or wage war with Russia. Nor does it wish to.’
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