Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend next month’s BRICS summit in Brazil, the Kremlin announced on Wednesday, citing the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant currently hanging over him.
The ICC, based in The Hague, issued the warrant last year, accusing Putin of unlawfully deporting Ukrainian children following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov confirmed that the Russian leader will instead join the 6–7 July summit of BRICS heads of state in Rio de Janeiro via video conference.
“This decision stems from the challenges posed by the ICC’s legal demands,” Ushakov explained to reporters.
Putin has consistently promoted the BRICS alliance as a geopolitical alternative to what he calls Western dominance. The bloc, originally composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, aims to strengthen cooperation among emerging economies, although it does not function as a formal trade union.
As a signatory to the ICC, Brazil would be legally obliged to detain Putin should he enter the country, a risk the Kremlin appears unwilling to take.
Despite the warrant, Putin travelled to Mongolia in 2023—an ICC member state—marking his first such trip since the court issued its order. That visit drew condemnation from both the ICC and the European Union, who criticised Ulaanbaatar for allowing the Russian leader’s entry.
