Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi cannot be sued in the UK over allegations that he accepted illegal payments as part of Mozambique's legal battle with shipbuilder Privinvest, the Court of Appeal in London said on Thursday.
The ruling read that Nyusi "has immunity from the jurisdiction of the English courts whilst he is the head of state of Mozambique."
The case centers on a $3.1 billion lawsuit filed by the Mozambican government against Privinvest for bribing state officials and Credit Suisse bankers - a case in which Privinvest then tried to implicate the president as a co-conspirator.
The government said that the bribes of the company exposed the nation to a potential liability of at least $2 billion.
In its indictment, Privinvest said that it paid $10 million to the ruling FRELIMO party in 2014 to finance Nyusi's presidential campaign.
The case is before the English courts because, in order to enter into loan agreements to finance the supply contracts, the government corporations provided sovereign guarantees under those agreements in accordance with English and Welsh law.
The case is before the English courts because the government corporations provided sovereign guarantees in accordance with English and Welsh law, in order to enter into loan agreements to finance the supply contracts.