Putin arrest warrant, war and weapons among issues as Lavrov attends BRICS meet in South Africa

By GERALD IMRAY
Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in South Africa with counterparts from the BRICS economic bloc of developing nations for discussions Thursday that were preceded by officials questioning the West’s intentions in the war in Ukraine. South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor also said an invitation had been extended to Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend a larger BRICS summit in South Africa in August despite him being the subject of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court. Thursday’s meeting in Cape Town of foreign ministers or their representatives from the BRICS countries of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa came soon after the world’s most advanced economies met in Japan.