Media reports on Tuesday alleging that Russia warned South Africa that Russian President Vladimir Putin's arrest at the upcoming BRICS summit would be a declaration of war are not true, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday.
"No. It was not mentioned [at talks between Russia and South Africa]. No one let anyone understand anything. In this world, it is absolutely clear to everyone what an attempt to encroach on the head of the Russian state means. Therefore, there is no need to explain anything to anyone here," Peskov told reporters.
Earlier, a representative of the vice president of South Africa said that President Cyril Ramaphosa directly discussed issues related to the ICC arrest warrant for the Russian leader with Putin ahead of the BRICS summit.
Ramaphosa previously noted that the summit would be held in person, and local media, citing the head of the BRICS Business Council, Nicolau Stavros, reported that the heads of all five states of the association were expected at the gathering.
Earlier this month, President Ramaphosa submitted a confidential affidavit responding to the opposition party Democratic Alliance's (DA) court application on how the government should deal with the situation. On Tuesday, the affidavit was made public. In court papers, he called DA's application "irresponsible", adding that carrying out the arrest could threaten the "security, peace and order of the state."
In mid-March, the Hague-based ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin and Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, citing the alleged illegal transfer of children from the combat zone in Ukraine to Russia. Moscow slammed the move as unlawful and false.
The Russian side has repeatedly noted that the accusations are untrue, with the children in fact being relocated voluntarily from the combat zone and returned once their homes are safe again.
South Africa, as a member of the organization, would be required to arrest Putin if he were to attend the gathering.
The South African president has repeatedly stated that since the onset of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine, the country has been under "extraordinary pressure" to abandon its position of being neutral and choose sides in the confrontation between Russia and the West.