South Africa this week instructed it could grant Russian President Vladimir Putin diplomatic immunity to attend an August summit for the BRICS financial bloc despite an outstanding warrant for his arrest.

The International Criminal Court – which South Africa is celebration to – issued the warrant for Putin’s arrest in March for warfare crimes dedicated in Ukraine. 

Theoretically, any ICC member nation Putin travels to can be compelled to seize the Kremlin chief, although South Africa is seemingly keen to skirt its worldwide obligations, in accordance to Russian press secretary Dmitry Peskov. 

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“Russia attaches enormous importance to the development of this format of integration. And Russia will take part in this summit at the proper level,” he stated throughout a Tuesday press convention. “Of course we count as a bare minimum on partner countries in such an important format not being guided by such illegal decisions.”

Russia has more and more appeared to bolster its ties with nations like South Africa as relations with the West stay tense amid the continuing warfare in Ukraine – a transfer officers have more and more warned might garner Moscow diplomatic sway.

An announcement by Clayson Monyela, head of South Africa’s public diplomacy, on Tuesday stated it was “standard” practice for Cape Town and “all countries” to concern immunity for officers attending worldwide conferences “irrespective of the level of participation.”

President Vladimir Putin speaks with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa through the Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi, Russia, Oct. 24, 2019. (Sergei Chirikov/Pool through Reuters)

“The immunities are for the convention and never for particular people. They are meant to protect the conference and its attendees from the jurisdiction of the host nation for the length of the convention,” he stated.

Though Monyela additionally added that “these immunities do not override any warrant that may have been issued by any international tribunal against any attendee of the conference.”

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It stays unclear if Putin will really find a way to attend the summit set for later this summer season, although South Africa has reportedly been wanting into the wording of the Rome Statute – the ICC’s establishing constitution – for any loopholes that will permit Putin to go to South Africa with out the need to then arrest him. 

In April, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa established an inter-ministerial committee to look into the language of the statute and the way it should be utilized. 

President Vladimir Putin and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on the first plenary session of the Russia-Africa Summit in Sochi, Russia, Oct. 24, 2019. (Sergei Chirikov/Pool through Reuters)

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Reports surfaced in late April suggesting that South Africa was contemplating leaving the ICC after the worldwide court docket issued the arrest warrant for Putin, although Ramaphosa instantly walked again this risk, calling it an “error in a comment” made by his ruling celebration. 

“South Africa remains a signatory to the Rome Statute and will continue to campaign for equal and consistent application of international law,” he stated in a press release on April 25.

Reuters contributed to this report.