United Nations Secretary General António Guterres welcomed the peacekeeping mission led by six African leaders that will soon leave for Ukraine and Russia.
Guterres’ spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, confirmed that the Portuguese had received a call from the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, informing him that the initiative was “welcome”.
“We are in favor of any initiative that can lead us to peace, in accordance with the Charter [das Nações Unidas]in accordance with international law and in accordance with the resolutions of the General Assembly,” Dujarric said at a press conference.
Ramaphosa announced Tuesday that a peacekeeping mission led by six African leaders would leave “as soon as possible” for Ukraine and Russia to try “to find a peaceful solution to the devastating conflict.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian Head of State Volodymyr Zelensky “agreed to receive the African mission and the heads of state in Moscow and Kiev,” Ramaphosa told a news conference in Cape Town.
In addition to South Africa, the mission includes Senegal, Zambia, Congo, Uganda and Egypt, the South African head of state said.
Ramaphosa, who said he spoke to his Russian and Ukrainian counterparts on “separate phone calls” over the weekend, said he expected “sustained exchanges with both leaders” during the mission.
African countries have been less unanimous than the great Western powers in denouncing the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Countries such as Senegal and South Africa abstained from voting on a United Nations resolution condemning it.
On Monday, the South African president expressed outrage, saying Pretoria was coming under “extraordinary pressure” to choose sides.
Close to the Kremlin since the days of the fight against ‘apartheid’, South Africa has always refused to condemn the invasion of Ukraine, claiming to remain “neutral” and wanting to prioritize dialogue.
This position has angered some members of the international community, especially since Pretoria hosted naval exercises with Russia and China in February, just before the first anniversary of the Russian invasion, reigniting Western concerns.
The announcement of an African mission also follows recent tensions between Pretoria and Washington over the Russian issue.
The US ambassador to South Africa said last week that a Russian cargo ship had docked near Cape Town in December and was returning to Russia with weapons and ammunition.
The South African government stated that there was no record of state-sanctioned arms sales to Russia during the period in question, and President Ramaphosa announced an inquiry into the matter.
Source: TSF
