The international arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin puts us "
on the road
", spokesman for South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Wednesday, as the country is due to host a BRICS summit in August in the presence of the President. Russian.
“
All heads of state should attend the summit.
But now we have obstacles in the way with this arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court
,” Vincent Magwenya, Cyril Ramaphosa's spokesperson, told a press conference.
“
What it requires is other arrangements, to see how this is going to be taken into account, and those arrangements are in progress.
Once they have been taken, the necessary announcements will be made
,” he added without further details.
The southern African country, which has close ties with Russia, is due to host a BRICS summit in August, a group of countries bringing together South Africa, Brazil, China, India and Russia.
However, the International Criminal Court (ICC), based in The Hague, issued an arrest warrant in March against Vladimir Putin for the war crime of "deportation" of
Ukrainian
children as part of Moscow's offensive against the 'Ukraine.
Since South Africa is a member of the ICC, it is theoretically supposed to arrest the Russian president upon his arrival in the country.
Proximity to Moscow
South Africa has been criticized since the start of the war in Ukraine for its proximity to Moscow.
Pretoria claims to respect a " neutral
" position
and refuses to join Western calls to condemn Russia, explaining that it wants to promote dialogue.
South Africa also hosted naval exercises with Russia and China off its coast in February.
Ties between South Africa and Russia date back to the apartheid era, with the Kremlin supporting the ANC in the fight against the racist regime.
The ICC arrest warrant has caused political turmoil in South Africa.
The first opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) party has called for Vladimir Putin to be arrested, asking the ICC to force the hand of the government.
But left-wing parties, including the South African Communist Party, an ally of the ruling African National Congress (ANC), have urged the government to welcome Vladimir Putin and withdraw from the ICC.
