Putin will not attend Brics summit - South African presidency

Russia's president volition not be a acme successful South Africa adjacent month, according to the country's presidency.

The announcement comes aft South Africa's person said immoderate effort to apprehension Vladimir Putin would beryllium a declaration of warfare against Russia.

If Mr Putin had near Russian soil, helium would person been taxable to an International Criminal Court (ICC) apprehension warrant.

South Africa is an ICC signatory and expected to assistance successful Mr Putin's arrest.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov volition correspond the state astatine the two-day acme instead.

However, Mr Putin volition instrumentality portion successful the Brics league - an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - by video link, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to Russian media.

The Brics grouping is seen by immoderate arsenic an alternate to the G7 radical of precocious economies.

In a statement, South Africa's presidency described the statement for Mr Putin not to be arsenic "mutual" and said it had travel astir pursuing a "number of consultations" connected the summit.

Supporters of Russia person criticised the decision, saying South Africa should person insisted and utilized its sovereignty to support and support its friend.

South Africa's invitation to Mr Putin, issued earlier the ICC accused him of warfare crimes successful Ukraine, has caused contention some nationally and internationally.

It came to beryllium seen arsenic a determination by the authorities to stray from the mediate crushed it has sought to tread, alongside different African nations, successful the conflict betwixt Russia and Ukraine.

But President Cyril Ramaphosa's authorities became frantic arsenic unit to apprehension President Putin mounted.

The biggest absorption party, the Democratic Alliance, went to tribunal to effort to unit the authorities to apprehension Mr Putin, should helium acceptable ft successful the country. Global quality rights radical Amnesty International was besides portion of the challenge.

Court documents uncover that Mr Ramaphosa was firmly against immoderate specified move, stating that nationalist information was astatine stake.

"Russia has made it wide that arresting its sitting president would beryllium a declaration of war. It would beryllium inconsistent with our constitution to hazard engaging successful warfare with Russia," helium said successful an affidavit.

Mr Peskov denied Moscow had told South Africa that arresting its president would mean an enactment of war, but said it was "clear to everyone what [that benignant of] infringement against the caput of the Russian authorities would mean".

Russia has consistently described the ICC apprehension warrant arsenic outrageous and legally void, due to the fact that the state is not a subordinate of the organisation.

The reasons for this alteration from state to country, but experts accidental 1 origin is the economical ties that some, including South Africa, person with Moscow.