The President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, says the country will not be forced to side any global powers.
President Ramaphosa said this in a televised nation’s address on Sunday as he prepared to host a summit of major emerging economies.
“While some of our detractors prefer overt support for their political and ideological choices, we will not be drawn into a contest between global powers.
“We have resisted pressure to align ourselves with any one of the global powers or with influential blocs of nations,” he said.
The summit which will happen this week, aims to widen their influence and push for a shift in global geopolitics.
South Africa’s hosting of the summit has turned a spotlight on its ties with the Kremlin, especially as it has refused to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Ramaphosa will be joined at the BRICS summit by China’s President Xi Jinping, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Russia will be represented by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, with President Vladimir Putin participating online.
Putin made the decision not to attend in person since he is the subject of an arrest order issued by the International Criminal Court, which South Africa is obligated to execute.
Given South Africa’s close relations to Russia and the latter’s refusal to detain former Sudanese dictator Omar al-Bashir in a related situation in 2015, the warrant created a diplomatic dilemma for weeks before to Putin’s announcement.
Chioma Kalu
Follow us on:
