RUSSIA- AFRICA SUMMIT: AFRICA SETTING THE PACE

Pretoria, which has close ties to Moscow, has been faced with a diplomatic dilemma since the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant against Putin in March. The Russian president is due to attend a summit of the BRICS nations in South Africa in August, alongside the leaders of Brazil, India, and China. However, as a member of the ICC, South Africa will be expected to arrest the Russian president should he set foot in the country. “All heads of state would be expected to attend the summit. But now we have a spanner in the works in the form of this ICC warrant,“ Vincent Magwenya, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, told a press briefing on Wednesday, adding that the situation was under review. The ICC issued the arrest warrant for Putin for the unlawful, alleged deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia. A continental powerhouse, South Africa has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying it wants to stay neutral and prefers dialogue to end the war. Earlier this year, Pretoria held a controversial joint military exercise with Russia and China, which critics cite as evidence of a tilt towards the Kremlin. South Africa’s ties with Russia date back decades when the Kremlin backed the ruling African National Congress in its fight against apartheid. The ICC warrant has been the cause of political tumult in the country. The leading opposition party, the Democratic Alliance has called for Putin to be arrested and for the ICC to force the government’s hand. But leftist parties, including the South African Communist Party - a close ally of the ruling African National Congress - have urged the government to welcome the Russian leader and to pull out of the ICC instead. The Russian authorities have been ramping up efforts to increase enrollment in the military. Multiple media sources report that the Russian army aims to recruit some 400,000 new recruits to bolster its stagnating invasion of Ukraine. Since Moscow invaded its neighbor last year, Russian forces have suffered significant casualties, with leaked U.S. intelligence documents suggesting that between 189,500 and 223,000 soldiers have been killed or wounded. In September, President Vladimir Putin declared a “partial“ mobilization of 300,000 reservists to replenish the military’s depleted forces. However, ongoing heavy fighting in eastern Ukraine has resulted in further military losses and a shortage of manpower. In mid-March, recruitment offices throughout Russia began issuing orders to draft-age men, instructing them to update their contact information. The Kremlin described the orders as “standard practice“ and stressed that there were currently no plans for a second wave of mobilization. A Russian single father who was detained in Minsk after fleeing house arrest in late March has been extradited back to Russia, the independent6 rights organization OVD-Info reported Wednesday, citing a Belarusian activist. Alexei Moskalev was handed a two-year jail sentence late last month by a Tula region court for “discrediting“ the Russian military over anti-war comments he made on social media. However, just before the sentencing, the 53-year-old fled house arrest, only to be apprehended by the authorities in the Belarusian capital Minsk a few days later. #brics #lineflux #bricssummit #brics2023 #russia #biden #impeachment #ramaphosa #impeachmentinquiry #southafrica