South Africa will not invite Putin to G20
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South Africa will not invite Russian President Vladimir Putin to the G20 summit. The reason is a warrant from the International Criminal Court that was issued to the head of the Russian Federation for the forced deportation of Ukrainian children and, accordingly, requires his arrest.
This was reported on Sunday, December 15, by The Moscow Time, citing a comment by the official representative of the South African president, Vincent Magwenya.
Why Putin will not be invited to the G20
"The legal situation has not changed since the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. We can't influence the ICC's decision in any way," Magwenya said when asked whether the Republic plans to invite the Russian president to the G20.
As a country that has ratified the Rome Statute, South Africa is obliged to execute an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin if he arrives.
The publication also added that the G20 summit will be held in Johannesburg on November 21-22, 2025.
As a reminder, the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for the Russian president on March 17, 2023. This means that Putin must be arrested outside Russia for trial in states that have ratified the Rome Statute.
It is also worth noting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy recently said that Putin is afraid of only one politician in the world, and that is the newly elected US President Donald Trump. In addition, the head of the Ukrainian state suggested that perhaps the Russian president is also afraid of China.
