At the G20 summit held in Delhi, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva assured in a conversation with news outlet Firstpost that Russian President Vladimir Putin would remain untouched, should he participate in the forthcoming 2024 G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro. This comment gains significance against the backdrop of the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Putin in March, alleging him of war crimes, notably the illicit relocation of numerous Ukrainian children. Russia, as cited by Reuters, has firmly rejected these allegations.
Lula further elaborated on his stance, reiterating his own plans to join the BRICS assembly in Russia prior to the Rio G20. “With certainty, Putin can visit Brazil without apprehensions,” he emphasized, implying that under his administration, any attempt to detain Putin would be dismissed.
G20 Treads Lightly on Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Unified Call for Global Peace Overpowers Direct Criticism
Interestingly, at the G20 summit in Delhi, Putin chose to be represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Despite Brazil’s commitment to the Rome Statute, which laid the groundwork for the ICC, Lula’s office remained tight-lipped, failing to address related queries, as noted by Reuters.
In a conclusive move, the G20 leaders unveiled a joint declaration, cautiously sidestepping any direct rebuke of Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Yet, the statement, sourced by Reuters, did emphasize a universal plea, urging nations to abstain from leveraging military force to annex territories.
Image: Kremlin.ru, Vladimir Putin at the site Donguzsky (2015-09-19), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (image resized).