THE office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be attending the upcoming BRICS economic summit in Johannesburg. The decision effectively spares South Africa from the dilemma of executing an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against Putin.
As a signatory to the ICC treaty, South Africa would have been obliged to arrest Putin if he had attended the summit. However, the country had given indications that it would likely not enforce the arrest warrant. The announcement now eliminates this problem and comes after Ramaphosa recently held a telephone conversation with Putin.
According to a statement from Ramaphosa’s office, the decision for Putin’s absence was made by ‘mutual agreement.’ Instead, Russia will be represented at the summit, scheduled for August 22-24, by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
The BRICS economic bloc consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Initially, South Africa had invited the leaders of the other four countries to the summit before the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin in March.
The announcement puts an end to months of speculation surrounding Putin’s potential visit to South Africa. Since being indicted for war crimes related to the abduction of children from Ukraine, Putin has not travelled to any country that is a signatory to the ICC treaty.
With Putin’s absence from the summit, South Africa can now proceed without the diplomatic complexities that would have arisen from the presence of the Russian leader. The focus will shift to discussions and collaborations among the remaining BRICS member countries as they explore economic cooperation and mutual interests.
