Nosmot Gbadamosi

Nosmot Gbadamosi, a multimedia journalist and writer for Foreign Policy, dives into South Africa's complex diplomatic quandary regarding Vladimir Putin's potential visit for the BRICS summit. She analyzes the implications of South Africa's International Criminal Court obligations and the strain on US-South Africa relations. The discussion touches on the country's non-alignment stance since the Ukraine conflict, how historical ties with Russia shape current diplomacy, and the broader consequences leading up to the 2024 elections.

On Thursday, South Africa’s Department of International Relations confirmed it would host the 15th BRICS Summit in August. Normally, this wouldn’t make the news. But because South Africa is a signatory to the International Criminal Court, the country is obligated under international law to arrest one of the summit’s invitees—Russian President Vladimir Putin—the moment he sets foot in Johannesburg.This presents South Africa with what Nosmot Gbadamosi has dubbed a “Putin problem.” Lawfare Managing Editor Tyler McBrien sat down with Nosmot, a multimedia journalist and the writer of Foreign Policy’s weekly Africa Brief, to discuss this diplomatic dilemma, why U.S.-South Africa relations have withered in recent months, and the incoherent Russia-Ukraine “peace mission” led by President Cyril Ramaphosa just weeks ago. They also discussed what the late Eusebius McKaiser has called South Africa’s “nonsensical nonalignment” since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year and what nonaligment even means in light of the war.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.