African National Congress (ANC), President Cyril Ramaphosa says the upcoming BRICS Summit will not be virtual, but a physical event of all nation states.
Briefing the media on the sidelines of the ANC’s NEC meeting in Boksburg, East of Johannesburg, Ramaphosa, was however, non-committal on whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would attend the event.
Meanwhile, Political analyst Rebone Tau, says that it’s unlikely that Putin, would come to South Africa for the summit in August.
Speculation has been rife regarding Putin’s attendance, as he was accused by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in March of kidnapping Ukrainian children, and an arrest warrant was issued against him.
This means that South Africa, who are signatories of the Rome Statute, have to arrest Putin on his arrival.
Tau says that the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, could also be the reason for Putin’s absence.
“I don’t think that President Putin would come here, reason being that he’s in war and we know recently what transpired in Moscow. He can’t face also the risk of just leaving the country at this present moment. So, I foresee him actually attending this meeting virtually because you must remember with the ministerial meeting that took place in Cape Town, that’s where everything was done. Now, the shepherds are just consolidating the communique for the summit. But the ministerial meeting is where all those decisions were taken.”
