The ANC has shot down calls by its leftist ally, the SA Communist Party (SACP), to expel US ambassador Reuben Brigety over the diplomatic fallout between the two countries arising from SA’s stance on the Russia-Ukraine war.
The US and SA appear to be seeking ways to calm the situation after Brigety accused SA of supplying arms to Russia to aid its war effort in Ukraine.
SA has denied the accusation from one of its largest trading partners, with President Cyril Ramaphosa launching an inquiry into the matter to be led by a retired judge.
To calm the situation, which last week caused turmoil in local markets, the ANC’s national working committee on Monday gave the green light to party secretary-general Fikile Mbalula and first deputy secretary-general Nomvula Mokonyane to meet Brigety this week.
“This is in a bid to also strengthen party-to-party relations with the US Democratic Party,” Mbalula told Business Day. “We have not ventured into the expulsion of the ambassador.”
SA has faced heavy criticism over its alleged pro-Russia foreign policy stance. This follows its repeated refusal to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at world forums, as well as a joint naval exercise with Russia off the KwaZulu-Natal coast in February and the docking of a Russian cargo vessel in Simon’s Town naval base carrying unknown cargo in December.
Brigety on Thursday accused SA of supplying ammunition to Russia in December 2022 when a Kremlin-owned cargo ship docked in Simon’s Town.
Brigety also criticised what he called “hostility” from the ANC after repeated failed attempts to meet party officials after the party’s 2022 conference resolutions which blamed the war in Ukraine on US foreign policy and the expansion of Nato.
“In our view, a diplomat must understand, especially a superpower like the US, the separation between party approach and government. We had a briefing from the envoy with security adviser Sydney Mufamadi about our government engagement in the US and we were quite delighted with the engagement. We were taken aback by the comments of the ambassador, for which he apologised,” Mbalula further told reporters on Monday.
“Our department of international relations led by Naledi Pandor has handled the matter very well. And we are quite impressed with the steps they have taken to defend SA’s integrity and sovereignty.”
On Monday, Ramaphosa emphasised SA’s nonaligned stance on the matter after phone calls he held with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky over the weekend.
“Consistent with our stance on conflicts in other parts of the world, SA’s view is that the international community needs to work together to urgently achieve a cessation of hostilities and to prevent further loss of life and displacement of civilians in Ukraine,” Ramaphosa said in his weekly newsletter.
“The reality is that the Russia-Ukraine conflict — and the tensions that underlie it — will not be resolved through military means. It needs to be resolved politically,” Ramaphosa said.
“We do not accept that our nonaligned position favours Russia above other countries. Nor do we accept that it should imperil our relations with other countries.”
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