Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the BRICS summit hosted by Johannesburg in late August, his South African counterpart confirmed on Wednesday.
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office said Putin will not attend the conference “by mutual agreement,” adding that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov would visit instead. The leaders of the other members of the BRICS economic bloc, Brazil, India and China, are still expected to attend in person.
The move by Ramaphosa’s government significantly weakens Moscow’s attempts to reestablish solidarity with key allies, as it finds itself increasingly isolated since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Earlier this year, South Africa hosted the Chinese and Russian navies for war games and was accused by the US ambassador of loading arms onto a sanctioned Russian vessel in December. Cape Town has denied any wrongdoing.
“Russia has made it clear that arresting its sitting president would be a declaration of war. It would be inconsistent with our Constitution to risk engaging in war with Russia,” Ramaphosa continued.
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