When asked whether he would proceed with the arrest of the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin should he attend the BRICS summit (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) next August in Johannesburg, he is asked to answer South Africa.

As a member of the International Criminal Court, South Africa is to arrest the Russian president, who has had an international arrest warrant issued since March last year on charges of kidnapping children from Ukraine and forcibly transporting them to Russia.

The South African foreign minister avoided a clear answer, stressing that her country would consider its options if the Russian president decides to attend the summit.

South Africa initially granted full diplomatic immunity to all leaders who attended the summit in August, meaning Vladimir Putin can travel to Johannesburg without fear of the country acting on an arrest warrant issued by an international criminal court.

However, South African experts insisted that the immunity announced in the government newspaper could not override the ICC’s arrest warrant. On the other hand, the authorities of the country are considering the possibility of transferring the meeting to China, which is not a member of the ICC.

One of the ways for South Africa, if it does not want to enter into a confrontation with Russia, is to immediately withdraw from the ICC. However, this requires a decision by the country’s parliament, in which the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party has a majority.

So far, the Russian president has not confirmed his presence at the summit in Johannesburg. However, the Kremlin left open the scenario of the participation of the Russian president, saying that Russia will be represented at the summit at the “proper level.”

South Africa already wanted to withdraw from the ICC in 2016 following a visit by former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. Pretoria then refused to arrest him, although the ICC also issued a warrant for his arrest.

The South African High Court then ruled that withdrawal from the ICC was unconstitutional and the country continued to comply with the provisions of the Rome Statute. The execution of ICC decisions is mandatory for countries that have signed the Rome Statute, including the Republic of South Africa.

According to the Guardian, AFP