South Africa set to welcome Russian warships despite criticism

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(Bloomberg) — South Africa will begin naval exercises off its eastern coast next month with Russian and Chinese warships in a move that could further strain relations with some of its biggest trading partners.

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Operation Mosi, which means smoke, will take place from February 17 to February 26. The United Kingdom and the European Union which support Ukraine in the conflict. The country’s largest opposition party questioned the wisdom of continuing the exercises.

It gives the impression of not being neutral but biased to one side. Obviously, this can alienate us from other important trading partners, the West, said Kobus Marais, the Defense Minister of the Democratic Alliance. It’s in Russia’s best interest, Marais said, calling it another bad judgment, an embarrassment.

Although the exercise follows a similar event in 2019, it comes about a year after Russia invaded Ukraine, an event that exposed South Africa’s close ties with Russia. because of the historical support for the liberation struggle of African countries and their joint membership in the BRICS. group of nations.

The United States, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom are South Africa’s top trading partners, while Russia is not in the top 15. Ministry of Defense spokespersons and South African navy officers did not return calls to their phones or respond immediately to emails.

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