Putin won’t attend Brics summit in South Africa

Russian President Vladmir Putin is believed to have told President Cyril Ramaphosa he is willing to miss the Brics summit in South Africa in August.   

The Sunday Times understands that if Putin does not make the trip he is likely to send foreign minister Sergey Lavrov in his stead.

Ramaphosa and Putin met privately in St Petersburg last weekend after talks with a delegation of African leaders attempting to mediate peace in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

A senior government official with intimate knowledge of the bilateral meeting said the Russian leader, who has a warrant of arrest issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC), is not opposed to a compromise. 

Pretoria found itself between a rock and a hard place in the past few months as pressure mounted over Putin's possible visit to the summit in Johannesburg, where South Africa would be legally obliged to arrested him.

Earlier this month, it emerged that South Africa had been trying to find solutions to hold the summit without Putin, while moving the event to another country was seen as a last resort.

Ramaphosa spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping, fuelling speculation that Pretoria was considering seeking another venue for the summit to avoid a diplomatic crisis.

Government insiders say Ramaphosa used last week’s peace tour with other African heads of state to Russia and Ukraine to persuade Putin not to attend the summit in person.

Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said Ramaphosa would make an announcement “about the hosting of Brics and all related matters”.

Ramaphosa is said to have tabled three options to Putin: skip the event and send a representative; attend the summit virtually; or have it moved to another country, preferably China.

“At this stage he [Putin] thinks that it will send the wrong message if South Africa is to move the summit,” said one insider.

“In the talks he made it clear that he doesn’t want to sabotage our summit. And, as a compromise, he would be willing to send foreign minister Lavrov to lead the Russian delegation while he remains in Moscow.

“So that's what we are currently working on. And remember, because the summit is now proceeding, there won't be any announcement from us because nothing has changed. So you won't see any statement or anything like that being put in the public domain.”

Putin made it clear that he doesn’t want to sabotage our summit

—  Government source

This was corroborated by another government official privy to the discussions. “He [Putin] won’t come and we are not in support of moving the summit.

What is likely to happen now is that he will send a last minute apology, perhaps on the day he’s supposed to land, stating that he has sent the minister to represent him.”

Magwenya said Ramaphosa and Putin had discussed “movement on some elements of the 10-point [peace] plan”, the Brics summit, and the “need to have a successful summit. There's nothing more I can tell you.”

He added: “Is he [Putin] going to come? We are working through that process diplomatically and the president will make an announcement in that regard at an appropriate time and well ahead of the summit.”

The Sunday Times has learnt that because of continued speculation and pressure the issue will be raised by Ramaphosa’s special envoys who travel to brief Western countries about the African peace mission.

“I do think that part of the conversations that the special envoys will be taking to the G7 will include the Brics matter and I think they will whisper to the capitals that Putin won't be attending. So we will not have this problem of the ICC and our legal obligations to detain him,” said one insider.

In May, Ramaphosa appointed minister of international relations & co-operation Naledi Pandor, trade & industry minister Ebrahim Patel, finance minister Enoch Godongwana and minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni as special envoys to brief G7 countries on the peace effort.

— Additional reporting by Kgothatso Madisa and Sibongakonke Shoba