MOSCOW, April 24. /TASS/. Moscow will continue to work in BRICS at all levels, including the highest. Decisions on Russia's participation in the summit in August in South Africa will be taken closer to the date, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Monday.
"The work [in BRICS] will continue at all levels - expert, high-level and top-level. Russia will continue to participate. As for the invitations [to the summit in August in South Africa], yes, there are indeed invitations. The relevant decisions will be made closer to the date. But in any case, Russia will take an active part in this," the Kremlin spokesman pointed out.
Peskov stressed that Moscow considered BRICS "a very important organization whose relevance is constantly increasing." "More and more countries are showing interest in the work of the organization," he added.
BRICS Summit
South Africa, now chairing the organization, is preparing for the BRICS Summit, which will take place in Durban in August in a face-to-face format. Invitations have been sent to all the leaders of the organization. Peskov said on March 24 that no decision had been made on Russian President Vladimir Putin's participation in the meeting.
On March 17, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Presidential Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova, alleging that they were responsible for the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children. When commenting on the decision, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out that Russia did not recognize the International Criminal Court. In turn, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the decisions of the ICC had no significance for Russia whatsoever, while any potential arrest warrants would be legally null and void.