Political Analyst and contributor for ScoonTV, Gugulethu Hughes, says Russian President Vladimir Putin would have never attended the 15th BRICS Summit in South Africa due to serious security concerns.
Putin’s possible attendance at the summit had presented a diplomatic dilemma for South Africa. The Russian President is under arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes linked to his country’s military operation in Ukraine.
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As an ICC member, South Africa would have been obliged to arrest President Putin, had he decided to attend the summit in person.
“Even without the ICC warrant of arrest, Vladmir Putin was never going to attend the BRICS Summit in South Africa while the country is under Ramaphosa. Security assessments outcome was that going to Johannesburg would have been tantamount to going into the White House in Washington DC.
“The level at which the USA has infiltrated the South Africa security apparatus is at its all-time high,” Hughes wrote on X.
According to The Presidency, the Russian Federation decided by mutual agreement to be represented by its Foreign Minister, Mr. Sergey Lavrov, with Putin participating virtually.
This decision followed the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) application in the Gauteng High Court to force the South African government to arrest President Putin if he set foot in the country, as demanded by the ICC warrant.
In his affidavit, Ramaphosa told the court that arresting Putin when he visits the country would amount to a declaration of war with Russia.
