South Africa is looking at ways to avoid the arrest of Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit in August. The country is hosting the next BRICS summit. Their heads of state, including Putin, are expected to attend.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant against the Russian president for war crimes. As a member of the ICC, South Africa would therefore be obliged to arrest Putin if he appeared at the summit.
Ramaphosa: Equivalent to “declaration of war”.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has asked the ICC not to arrest Putin, saying doing so would be tantamount to “a declaration of war”, according to a local court ruling released today. Ramaphosa commented on an opposition lawsuit, which wants to force him to arrest Putin if he enters the country.
Ramaphosa said he had started an Article 97 procedure with the ICC, which states can invoke when they are unable to make an arrest because of impediments.
“South Africa is having apparent problems complying with a request for the arrest and extradition of President Putin,” the affidavit said. Russia has made it clear “that the arrest of its current president would be tantamount to a declaration of war”. That’s exactly what former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in March.
South African officials have repeatedly said the summit will go ahead despite the controversy. But there is also speculation that the meeting could be moved to China because of the problem. The country is not a member of the ICC.
“It would rule out any peaceful solution”
Ramaphosa was in Kiev and Moscow in June as part of a peace initiative with other African leaders. In his submission to the court, he now indicated that those efforts could be compromised: “An arrest of President Putin would lead to a new complication that would rule out any peaceful solution,” he said. The Kremlin has not yet publicly stated whether Putin will attend the summit. According to Ramaphosa, the decision is still open.
South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said yesterday at a UN event marking the 25th anniversary of the ICC that it must be careful not to become an instrument of global power struggles. South Africa officially describes itself as neutral in the Ukraine war. However, Western countries consider him a close ally of Moscow.