Deputy President David Mabuza says “no amount of condemnation” will solve the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, as the government comes under mounting criticism for its controversial stance on the invasion.
During a question-and-answer session in parliament on Wednesday, Mabuza — who has visited Russia on several occasions seeking treatment after allegedly being poisoned — said SA’s close ties with Russia did not mean the ANC government was “blind” to the conflict, but it would not be taking sides.
“We are committed as a country to justice and international law, and agreed mechanisms that will resolve the conflict. No amount of condemnation and side-taking will resolve this problem... diplomacy remains the best tool to end this,” Mabuza said.
Earlier in March, SA abstained from voting as the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution rebuking Russia for the invasion of Ukraine. The SA government argued that the resolution did not create an environment conducive for diplomacy, dialogue and mediation.
The resolution, which aims to isolate Russia politically, also called on Moscow to immediately withdraw all its forces from that country. It won support from 141 of the 193-member body, and came at the end of a rare emergency session of the General Assembly called by the Security Council, and as Russian forces pounded Ukraine’s cities with air strikes and bombardments, causing hundreds of casualties and hundreds of thousands of to flee.
But SA, which has close economic ties to Russia via Brics, has taken a softer stance — much to the chagrin of Western envoys. Brics is an association of five major emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China and SA.
DA leader in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Cathlene Labuschagne asked Mabuza whether he supported the calls for Russia to withdraw its troops — a call that was also previously made by international relations minister Naledi Pandor, which is said to have raised the ire of President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Mabuza reiterated the governments official stance on the need for dialogue and diplomacy to solve the conflict, adding that Ramaphosa was the “rightful person to guide the country” on such issues.
“In any foreign [affairs] matters, the president will be the rightful person to guide the country. We support the statement made by the president that mediation and dialogue is the best way to sustainable peace,” Mabuza said.
In comments that could be viewed as sympathetic to Russia’s argument, Mabuza highlighted that at the heart of the conflict was the expansion of the Nato alliance.
“There were agreements reached not to expand Nato even with one inch towards the East and some of these agreements were not honoured ... be that as it may, we have reached a point now where we think the best way to resolve all the problems that have accumulated for all these years — the expansion of Nato, the aggression of Nato and the response from the Russian Federation — is opening a platform where we can mediate, where parties can talk and resolve their problems,” Mabuza said.
“We want to thank the Russian Federation, especially ... Putin for opening mediation and talks between his government and the government of Ukraine. As we are speaking now, they are in a meeting; they are trying to resolve their differences which we support.”
Labuschagne quizzed Mabuza on why the ANC government was seemingly siding with Russia. “Can [you] help us make financial sense of the reasoning behind our government’s stance, when in 2021, SA’s exports to and from Russia and its political allies totalled R15.7bn, but with the 30 Nato countries, that number came to R1.1-trillion? Our economy is contracting and unemployment is skyrocketing: why are we sacrificing our country’s economy for ANC alliances? And will you undertake to meet the Ukrainian ambassador to SA?”
Mabuza repeated the government stance that the SA is not taking sides. He also said Ramaphosa would be open to meeting the Ukrainian president.
“Yes, we have strong relations with Russia, but this does not mean we are blind to the situation ... we are calling for mediation and diplomacy,” Mabuza said.
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