Image: REUTERS/ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO
Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon descend to South Africa – and with him will be more than a dozen of Russia's top government officials.
Putin will be in the country for the BRICS Summit‚ taking place in Johannesburg from the 25th until 27th July. Putin last visited South Africa for the BRICS Summit that was held in Durban‚ five years ago.
His only state visit in the country was back in 2006.
Russian embassy press attaché Alexander Kulyaev said the places that Putin would visit while in the country would be determined by the BRICS Summit’s programme directors.
Kulyaev said the Cradle of Humankind was one of the potential places that the BRICS delegation would possibly visit.
“Everything is changing by the minute and it is difficult to confirm who is coming. However‚ there will be a big delegation of ministers who will accompany the president‚” Kulyaev said.
He said more than a dozen ministers would attend‚ including Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov.
The summit is convened annually‚ with discussions around political and socio-economic coordination as well as giving countries a chance to identify and act on business opportunities and areas of cooperation.
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