Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone call with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in which they discussed the Black Sea grain deal, due to expire on Monday, and a summit in South Africa next month.
In a statement today, the Kremlin said Ramaphosa had briefed Putin about preparations for the event, but did not give details of their exchange.
Meanwhile in its statement Ramaphosa’s office, said both men discussed an African peace initiative for Ukraine and the need for a permanent and sustainable solution to the movement of grain from Russia and Ukraine to the international markets.
Ramaphosa finds himself in an awkward position as host of the BRICS summit following an arrest warrant issued against Putin in March by the International Criminal Court (ICC), which accused him of the war crime of deporting Ukrainian children to Russia.