Cape Town – US ambassador to South Africa Reuben Brigety has “apologised unreservedly” after accusing South Africa of aiding Russia’s war effort in the year-long conflict with Ukraine, the department of international relations and cooperation (Dirco) said on Friday.
Brigety, on Thursday, claimed that South Africa covertly provided arms to Russia, a charge that drew an angry rebuke from Pretoria.
He told a media briefing the US believed weapons and ammunition had been laden onto a Russian freighter that docked at a Cape Town naval base in December.
“We are confident that weapons were loaded onto that vessel and I would bet my life on the accuracy of that assertion,” Brigety said, according to a video of the remarks.
“The arming of Russia by South Africa… is fundamentally unacceptable.”
But South Africa slammed the charge, with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya saying in a statement: “The Ambassador’s remarks undermine the spirit of cooperation and partnership” between the two countries.
Brigety was on Friday summoned to explain his conduct after Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela said the government had expressed its “utter displeasure” at the ambassador’s statements.
A statement released by Dirco after the démarche confirmed that Brigety allegedly “admitted that he crossed the line and apologised unreservedly” for his comments.
The meeting between USA Ambassador to South Africa @ReubenBrigety and @DIRCO_ZA
took place this afternoon. We conveyed our displeasure with his conduct and he admitted that he crossed the line and apologised unreservedly. The relations between the USA & South Africa are cordial,… pic.twitter.com/5pBxTgyI82— Clayson Monyela (@ClaysonMonyela) May 12, 2023
“Dirco finds this behaviour by the US ambassador to South Africa puzzling and at odds with the mutually beneficial and cordial relationship that exists between the United States of America and South Africa,” said Monyela.
“South Africa is known globally for having one of the most stringent processes when selling arms to other countries.
“Dirco welcomed the decision by President Cyril Ramaphosa to appoint a judicial inquiry into the allegations.
“This process will allow for facts to be established and for role players to be identified. Anyone found to have broken the law will face severe consequences.
“South Africa calls on the US Embassy in Pretoria, to use established diplomatic channels of communication to convey any concerns or to seek clarity on any misunderstandings that may arise in the bilateral relationship,” he said.
Meanwhile, Brigety also tweeted and confirmed his meeting with International Relations and Copoprtaion Minister Naledi Pandor.
“I was grateful for the opportunity to speak with Foreign Minister Pandor this evening and correct any misimpressions left by my public remarks. In our conversation, I re-affirmed the strong partnership between our two countries & the important agenda our Presidents have given us,” he said.
I was grateful for the opportunity to speak with Foreign Minister Pandor this evening and correct any misimpressions left by my public remarks. In our conversation, I re-affirmed the strong partnership between our two countries & the important agenda our Presidents have given us.
— Ambassador Reuben Brigety (@USAmbRSA) May 12, 2023
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
‘This is a very serious matter’ – South Africans fret over US arms-to-Russia charge
Johannesburg – South Africans were left angry and baffled on Friday after the US accused their country of secretly shipping arms to Russia, a charge that triggered both a government rebuke but also the announcement of an inquiry.
US ambassador Reuben Brigety on Thursday said Washington was confident weapons and ammunition had been laden onto a Russian freighter that docked at a Cape Town naval base.
The explosive remarks drew an angry response from President Cyril Ramaphosa, who however did not deny the charge but said a retired judge would lead an investigation into the matter.
The move was welcomed by the United States but met with a mix of ridicule and bewilderment at home, with many questioning how the government could not have known what had happened.
“It perhaps points to a South African president who simply is unaware of what is happening effectively under his nose,” political and economic analyst Daniel Silke told AFP.
ALSO READ | SA supplied weapons to Russia for Ukraine war – US
The emerging picture was of “information disarray” within the government, he said.
The Lady R, a cargo vessel under western sanctions flying a Russian flag, docked at South Africa’s largest naval base in December, officially to offload an old order of ammunition.
But ambassador Brigety said intelligence showed weaponry was loaded onto the vessel before it headed back to Russia.
“Did we or didn’t we? And if we did, shouldn’t the president know?” Bongani Bingwa, host of a popular morning radio show, wrote on Twitter.
Others quipped that the government appeared to be setting up inquiries for everything.
The deadline for the latest investigation has not been revealed, and there has been no immediate announcement as to who will lead it.
Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, a minister in the president’s office, told local media on Friday that South Africa “cannot be bullied by the US” and would follow a “time frame that is suitable for us”.
‘Disingenuous’
If confirmed, the shipment would mark a break from South Africa’s professed neutrality over the conflict in Ukraine.
The ministry of international relations and cooperation on Friday said there was no record of any approved arms sales to Russia during the period in question but the probe would shed light on the case.
“There should be nothing to investigate,” Kobus Marais, a lawmaker with the main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), told AFP.
“The president as the commander-in-chief and the minister of defence should know exactly what happened,” he said.
“It’s disingenuous of them to suggest they’re innocent and just bystanders.”
South Africa has been walking a diplomatic tightrope over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which it has refused to condemn, saying it prefers dialogue to end the war.
ALSO READ | SA hits back over US charge of arms to Russia
A continental powerhouse, the country has strong economic and trade relations with the US and Europe.
Trade with Russia is much smaller, but Pretoria has ties with Moscow dating back decades, to when the Kremlin supported the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party in its struggle against apartheid.
The remarks triggered a diplomatic spat just hours after Brigety made them, during a briefing with local media.
Ramaphosa’s office said the comments undermined “the spirit of cooperation and partnership” between the two nations, while the ANC described them as “reckless and regrettable” in a later deleted tweet.
The foreign ministry on Friday said it would formally protest to Brigety while Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor would speak to Washington later.
‘Economic suicide’
The quarrel has also heightened concerns about South Africa’s ailing economy, with analysts saying the country has much to lose and little to gain from a fight with Washington.
The rand dropped sharply against the dollar reaching its lowest point in three years on Thursday.
“The news certainly aggravated the negative sentiments towards South Africa,” said Hugo Pienaar, chief economist at Bureau for Economic Research, a think tank.
Afrikaans rights group AfriForum said the government was “leading South Africa to economic suicide” by siding with Russia.
ALSO READ | Fears Russia row will hit SA-US trade ties
Some worry the US could kick the country out of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) – a deal granting duty-free access to the US market for products from sub-Saharan nations that comply with standards on rights and democracy.
South Africa is the largest beneficiary of the agreement, which was worth $21 billion to the country’s economy last year, according to the US ambassador.
“This is a very serious matter,” said Silke, adding South Africa’s economy was already “very vulnerable”, facing almost zero growth and contracting domestic demand.
“South African exporters… desperately need their products to be sold on international shelves.”
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Source: AFP
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