SA, which has faced criticism for apparent policy inconsistency and failure to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, is set to resist pressure from the EU to toughen its stance.
The country is set to maintain a “neutral” stance on a UN resolution that is due to be debated and subjected to a vote on Wednesday. That is despite EU diplomats lobbying officials at the department of international relations & co-operation to join them in condemnation of Russia.
The diplomats expressed frustration over President Cyril Ramaphosa’s apparent unwillingness to speak out more strongly against what they say is a “wholesale military attack” on Ukraine.
“The neutral line would essentially be pro-Russia, in this case,” a Pretoria-based European diplomat said.
Russia announced a “military exercise” in Ukraine last Thursday, and the resultant conflict has already caused hundreds of casualties, while hundreds of thousands have fled the country.
A major war in Europe — SA’s largest trading partner — threatens to destabilise the global economy, which is on a recovery path from the Covid-19 outbreak. The conflict has already pushed the price of oil, of which SA is an importer, above $100 a barrel. It may also fuel inflation through surges in food prices as a result of disruptions to wheat exports from Russia and Ukraine.
EU ambassador Riina Kionka in Pretoria earlier this week told a roundtable on security in Africa that Russia’s attack on Ukraine disregards international law and the UN Charter, and is a violation of the founding principles of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe. It is also a violation of “the interests and the rights of its neighbour”, she added. “So obviously, the EU cannot stand by in this situation.”
A number of diplomats were working hard this week on “a démarche on [the department] on the resolution”, Kionka said. This diplomatic term is commonly used when a country calls in a diplomat to explain any contrary or controversial view by its government, and the use of the word by Kionka showed her frustration.
“This would be a case in which we would very much hope that we see our EU-SA strategic partnership in action, with the result of SA’s vote on that resolution,” she said.
Brussels this week passed three different packages of measures targeted at Russia’s finance, energy and transport sectors and at news outlets Russia Today and Sputnik, which have been reporting Russian government propaganda on the conflict.
In contrast to condemnation by Western powers, which have instituted a range of tough sanctions on Russia and close associates of President Vladimir Putin, SA’s position has been more ambiguous. After days of silence in the build-up to the conflict, international relations minister Naledi Pandor last week called on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine, only for the presidency to make an apparent about-turn. Minister in the presidency Mondli Gungubele said on Sunday that SA believes in a negotiated solution to the conflict. “We will always be opposed to any conflict that leads to a loss of life,” he said.
SA’s ambassador to the UN, Mathu Joyini, in her prepared speech delivered at a special emergency sitting of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday night, stuck to the presidency’s line on the conflict, calling for UN-mediated talks.
“We urge all parties to approach the situation in a spirit of compromise, with all sides upholding human rights, abiding by their obligations under international law and international humanitarian law,” she said. She also called on UN member countries to “devote equal attention to other long-standing conflicts where the UN Charter and human rights are being violated”.
SA is part of the Brics bloc, which has Brazil, Russia, India and China as the other members. SA has aligned itself to these countries in global forums, especially Russia and China. The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that China had toughened its language on the conflict, saying it deplored the harm to civilians and offering to play a role in finding a ceasefire.
Diplomats from dozens of countries protested against Moscow’s attacks on Ukraine by staging a walkout on Tuesday when Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov addressed the UN Human Rights Council and the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva by video-link. This included representatives from the EU, the US and the UK.
SA was not among the countries that walked out as Pandor was outside the hall in a bilateral meeting at the time, spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said. The council is also set to debate the situation in Russia this week.
Diplomats say the EU and its allies are willing to budge on the wording of the resolution before the UN General Assembly if it means that more countries would support it.
“The main points would be to condemn Russia’s aggression and express support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” another European diplomat said.
A government official indicated that SA is unlikely to support the EU’s stance and, at most, diplomats expect it to abstain. There was already a vote in the UN Security Council condemning Russia’s actions, which was rendered symbolic because of a veto by permanent member Russia. The resolution was supported by 87 countries.
Almost 150 UN member states indicated that they wanted to speak in the UN General Assembly debate, which started in New York on Monday.
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