Ramaphosa confirms that the BRICS summit in South Africa, to which Putin is invited, will be in person

July 10 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, confirmed this Sunday that the BRICS summit will be held “face to face” with the rest of the leaders.

“I’m sorry to disappoint you, it will not be virtual. Our non-aligned status means that we are connected to all the countries of the world. This is the political position that we intend to follow in the future. We learned this approach from former President Nelson Mandela,” Ramaphosa said. , according to the South African newspaper ‘The Citizen’.

The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, is also invited to the summit despite the international arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC), although the South African president has not confirmed that he will finally attend.

Although Ramaphosa has reported that the preparations are in their final phase, there are rumors about a possible transfer of the summit to China to avoid breaching the ICC order.

However, it is not the first time that South Africa would fail to comply with its obligations with the ICC, after in 2015 it was the target of international criticism for refusing to arrest the then Sudanese president, Omar Hasan al Bashir, whom the court was also claiming. for war crimes.

Since the start of the invasion, South Africa has always defended its impartiality, abstaining on several occasions from voting on United Nations resolutions condemning Russia’s actions, a position similar to that of Brazil. Both are part of the BRICS regional group, which also includes India and Russia.