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South Africa has claimed it will not be able to arrest Vladimir Putin at next month’s planned BRICS summit in Johannesburg because Russia has threatened a “declaration of war” if the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant against its leader is enforced.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said in court documents released Tuesday that “Russia made it clear that arresting its incumbent president would be a declaration of war” when he revealed that Pretoria had informed the ICC that it might not be able to arrest Putin.
Putin’s acceptance of a South African invitation to appear at the summit alongside Chinese, Indian, Brazilian and other leaders of the so-called Brics states has yet to be confirmed. Faced with a looming conflict with Pretoria’s legal obligations, Ramaphosa’s government is increasingly keen to dissuade him from traveling.
“South Africa has apparent problems implementing a request to arrest and extradite President Putin.” . It would be contrary to our constitution to risk war with Russia,” Ramaphosa said.
As a member of the International Criminal Court, South Africa would risk violating its own and international law if it tried to avoid arresting Putin after the court indicted him on war crimes charges related to kidnapping children in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Rome Statute Treaty, which underlies the International Criminal Court, allows states to consult the court if they encounter problems in carrying out its arrest warrants. South Africa is now using this route. Ramaphosa declined to reveal details of those consultations in the court filings.
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Pretoria previously used this route after failing to comply with an ICC request to arrest Omar al-Bashir, the former President of Sudan, during a visit to South Africa in 2015. South Africa’s arguments at the time were rejected by the court.
The South African leader will try again to persuade Putin to stay away during a Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg this month, said Paul Mashatile, deputy president.
The court filings were unveiled in a case brought by South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, to force Ramaphosa’s government to carry out the ICC warrant if Putin attends the gathering. Ramaphosa’s office said it never opposed the papers’ release.
Prosecutors said the allegation of a war threat from Russia was a “flamboyant” and “straw man” argument, “although the constitutional principle and both domestic and international law make the merits of this case crystal clear.”
Analysts doubt Putin wants to leave Russia for a long trip to South Africa amid the Wagner mutiny and raging war in Ukraine.
Ramaphosa said he would announce when a decision would be made on Putin’s attendance at the summit.