South Africa says Putin will skip a summit next month because of his ICC arrest warrant

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa says Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend an economic summit in Johannesburg next month. The decision means South Africa will not have to face the dilemma of whether it should act on an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against the Russian leader. As a signatory to the treaty that created the ICC, South Africa would have been obliged to arrest Putin. The country’s president and other officials have indicated that South Africa would likely not carry out the the arrest warrant. Wednesday’s announcement allows South Africa to avoid the problem. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has spoken with Putin by telephone in recent days.