Cape Town – The Presidency has dismissed the call made by the EFF for Brics leaders to boycott the upcoming summit in solidarity with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Presidency previously announced that Putin would attend the Brics gathering to avoid arrest in relation to an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant issued for alleged crimes during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The EFF accused the South African government of blocking Putin’s attendance due to pressure from the ICC.
“We called for Brics heads of state to stay away in solidarity with President Putin because today is President Putin tomorrow it be the Chinese President, Indian President or even the President of Brazil. So, in solidarity with President Putin they must send their minister and say we are not coming, because the establishment of Brics was to create an alternative platform to avoid this type of nonsensical arrangement. Russia is not a signatory to ICC. And why would South Africa want to arrest people who are not signatory to ICC,” EFF leader Julius Malema said during an interview with SABC.
The party argued that Putin’s absence threatened the unity and future influence of Brics on the global stage.
However, according to News24, the Presidency said that all heads of state would attend except Putin, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov would represent the country.
“Heads of state can never be [commandeered] by noisy opposition parties that have little to no standing on global affairs.
“All preparations are on track and South Africa is ready to receive the Brics heads of state and many others from the African continent and beyond who will be in attendance,” the report quoted Magwenya as saying.
The EFF’s call comes amid the DA’s application in court to compel the government to uphold its international obligations as signatories to the ICC’s Rome Statute and implement the Putin arrest warrant. The summit is set to take place in Gauteng from 22 to 24 August.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
