After the United States claimed this week that it delivered weapons to Moscow, South Africa’s national security advisor announced on Saturday that the government was “actively non-aligned” in Russia’s confrontation with Ukraine.
On Thursday, Reuben Brigety, the United States ambassador to South Africa, said he was confident a Russian ship under sanctions had acquired weaponry from a naval base near Cape Town when it landed in December.
He said that senior US officials had “profound concerns” about South Africa’s non-alignment strategy.
After leading a visit to the United States last month, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s security advisor, Sydney Mufamadi, emphasized South Africa’s neutrality in the fight.
“We need to explain that we are actively non-aligned in terms of the conflict,” Mufamadi said in an online briefing. “We will make certain that, if wars break out, our contribution will always be calculated to assist the parties and everyone else in bringing such conflicts to an end.”
South Africa voted against United Nations resolutions denouncing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
However, South Africa’s stance has been called into question after naval exercises with Russia and China this year, as well as receiving Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Brigety confirmed his views after meeting with Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor on Friday, which were promptly rejected by Ramaphosa’s cabinet. In a late-evening formal statement, the ambassador “admitted that he crossed the line and apologized unreservedly to the government and people of South Africa.”
Brigety’s words also caused the rand to fall 4.7% in a week as investors worried about potential fines.
During the briefing on Saturday, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana questioned Brigety’s timing, claiming that his views included no new information and had been addressed by Ramaphosa in February.
