Russian President Vladimir Putin stated on Friday that his participation in next month’s G20 summit in Brazil could interfere with the event’s proceedings. Instead, he confirmed that another representative would attend on Moscow’s behalf.
Putin’s decision comes as the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for him, citing alleged war crimes in Ukraine. Ukraine has called on Brazil to detain Putin if he attends the November 18-19 summit.
While acknowledging his good relationship with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Putin questioned the necessity of attending, saying, “Why would I go there to disrupt the normal work of this forum?”
Putin also suggested that Russia could enter a bilateral agreement with Brazil to sidestep the ICC warrant, adding, “Such decisions are easy to work around by signing an intergovernmental agreement, which would limit the ICC’s jurisdiction.”
Russia, which is not a member of the ICC, has consistently rejected the war crime allegations made by Ukraine, the ICC, and Western nations.
