Putin will not attend upcoming BRICS summit in South Africa

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Just as NGO’s and opposition parties take the government to court to force it to enforce a warrant of arrest issued by the ICC for Russian President Vladimir Putin when he comes for BRICS summit, President Matamela Ramaphosa has made a long awaited announcement.

Ramaphosa has said in several occasions for the past months that only he can make announcement on whether they will be enforcing the warrant or not.

This was as the EFF and other ANC members were of the view that the ICC is biased and u fair to Africa  countries in how they treat certain cases and fugitives.

The Presidency confirmed that Putin will be represented by his foreign affairs minister in the BRICS summit.

“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.”

“In due course, a comprehensive statement on the substantive issues to be covered at the Summit and other related foreign policy matters will be issued. “

“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.”