The decision allows South Africa to avoid the predicament of whether to arrest the Russian leader, who is the subject of an international warrant, if he traveled to Johannesburg for a BRICS meeting.
The International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for President Vladimir V. Putin could thrust his allies into domestic and foreign legal disputes, experts say.
South Africa starts 11 days of joint naval drills with Russia and China on Friday, despite criticism from American, European and even some South African officials that it looks like an endorsement of Russia’s Ukraine war.
The 10-day naval exercises are a show of diplomatic independence for South Africa, which is part of an alliance with Brazil, Russia, India and China — known as BRICS.