Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov has refuted claims that Russia has purportedly conveyed to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa that the arrest of Russian leader Vladimir Putin on an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant at the BRICS summit would amount to a declaration of war.
"No, such signals have not been made. No one has conveyed any such messages. It is widely understood worldwide what it entails to encroach upon the Russian head of state. There is no need to explain anything on this matter," Peskov stated in response to a question from reporters on Wednesday.
The office of the South African president previously announced that Putin would not be attending the upcoming BRICS summit in August, and instead, Russia will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
On March 17, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin and Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova on charges of "illegal deportation" of Ukrainian children. Peskov emphasized that Moscow does not recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC. Meanwhile, Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, dismissed the significance of the ICC rulings, stating that any potential arrest warrants hold no legal validity for Russia.
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Photo: official website of the President of the Russian Federation
Based on materials from TASS