New Delhi: In light of the potential arrest threat against Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson for the Russian President, confirmed that Vladimir Putin will engage in the BRICS summit through a video conference, ensuring his active and complete participation. Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will be present in person at the summit, as reported by ANI.
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided to participate in the BRICS summit via video conference. This will be full-fledged participation. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will attend the summit in person,” said Peskov.
This comes after the Republic Presidency of South Africa earlier announced that, as per a mutual agreement, President Vladimir Putin will not be attending the Summit. However, the Russian Federation will be represented by its Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov.
“By mutual agreement, President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation will not attend the Summit but the Russian Federation will be represented by Foreign Minister, Mr Sergey Lavrov,” said the Republic Presidency of South Africa
Meanwhile, The Democratic Alliance, South Africa’s largest opposition political party, had filed a petition with a court in Pretoria, the nation’s executive capital. The petition seeks to compel the government to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin should he attend the upcoming summit in Johannesburg, scheduled for late August.
According to a report by the New York Times, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, reacting to the petition, expressed concerns that his country would face a potential risk of ‘war’ with Russia if it were to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin
The International Criminal Court had issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin on charges related to the war in Ukraine. As a signatory to the court, South Africa is legally obligated to arrest President Putin if he is present within its jurisdiction.
President Ramaphosa has declared that South Africa is fully prepared to host the momentous 15th Summit of the BRICS nations, comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.
South Africa will host the first in-person BRICS Summit since the pandemic began.
“President Ramaphosa is confident that the Summit will be a success and calls on the nation to extend the necessary hospitality to the many delegates who will arrive from various parts of the continent and the globe.” said the Republic Presidency of South Africa.
(With Agency Inputs)