South Africa prepares to withdraw from ICC for Putin’s visit

The Republic of South Africa, which will host the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in August, is preparing to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), which issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is scheduled to attend the summit.

In a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa stated that he supports the decision of the ruling party African National Congress (ANC) to withdraw South Africa from the ICC.

Ramaphosa stated that the arrest warrant for Putin, who was scheduled to attend the BRICS Leaders’ Summit, was effective in this decision, and that the “unfair treatment” of the ICC should be discussed.

ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula had announced earlier that her party had decided to take responsibility for South Africa’s withdrawal from the ICC.

Mbalula stated that it is “hypocritical” to expect South Africa to catch Putin under an agreement to which the major powers are not party, and noted that they would be pleased with Putin’s participation in the summit.

There are deep relations between the ANC and Moscow dating back to the cold war period. The basis of these relations is the support of the Soviet Union in the struggle against the apartheid regime that ruled South Africa from 1948-1994. The ANC, which was a banned political movement at the time, has been in power since 1994.

On the other hand, South Africa’s relations with Russia and its neutral stance in the Russia-Ukraine crisis draw the reaction of Western states.

MAJOR OPPOSITION SUPPORTS IMPLEMENTATION OF ICC DECISION

The main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), on the other hand, demands that the ICC’s decision be implemented if Putin attends the summit.

“Despite Russia’s only 0.3 percent of South Africa’s trade ties, the ANC and President Ramaphosa are working to protect a so-called war criminal and support the oligarchic patronage,” the DA tweeted. willing to disregard their interests.” expressions were used.

Photo: AA