Despite rumours that it would be moved to China so that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin could attend in a country that is not required to detain him on charges of war crimes, South Africa announced on Thursday that it will host the BRICS grouping meeting in August as scheduled.
Due to an arrest order for Putin related to the expulsion of children from Ukraine, South Africa, a signatory to the International Criminal Court (ICC), is required to detain him if he attends the discussions between the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, and China. Putin disputes the accusations.
“South Africa will host the 15th BRICS Summit at the Sandton Convention Centre in Sandton, Johannesburg, from 22 to 24 August 2023,” the Department of International Relations said in a statement.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa met on July 17. Russia has historically been a close friend of the ruling African National Congress (ANC), which was a liberation movement that opposed white minority rule decades earlier.
According to a text message from the presidency’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, the entire summit, including the main portion involving the BRICS heads of state, would take place in South Africa.
Putin’s attendance is uncertain, according to both him and a department spokesperson for international relations.
The BRICS nations were reportedly considering shifting the summit to China, which is not a member of the international court, according to South African authorities at the end of last month. They could yet opt to switch the location right before the event.
Putin has not yet responded to an invitation that was made before the ICC charged him on March 18, according to South Africa’s Minister of International Relations, Naledi Pandor, who stated this on Tuesday.
According to Pandor, the leaders of China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi, and Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva all want to attend.
Despite claiming to remain impartial in the Ukraine war, South Africa has come under fire from the West for its close ties to Russia, including hosting Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and participating in joint naval drills.