By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: Reuters.
Head of the Presidential Protection Services (PPS), Major General Wally Rhoode, has expressed frustration over delays experienced by a contingent of specialised police officers and journalists who were not allowed to disembark at the Warsaw Chopin Airport.
The plane has been stuck on the runway since 1 pm on Thursday after it landed at the Warsaw Chopin Airport in Poland.
Rhoode described the Polish officials behaviour as “surprising” adding that it may harm the road to peace mission aimed at a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is leading a delegation of African leaders in a bid to broker peace between Ukraine and Russia.
Ramaphosa along with the Presidents of Zambia, Senegal and the Comoros arrived in Ukraine by train for deliberations on Friday with President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The Presidents of Congo Brazzaville, Egypt and Uganda have sent their representatives for the mission.
Ramaphosa and his counterparts are, over the next few days, expected to lead the African peace mission, which will see the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, and Russia’s Vladimir Putin, sitting on the negotiation table.
[ARRIVAL]: His Excellency President @CyrilRamaphosa has arrived at Nemishaeve Railway Station in Ukraine and is received by Ukraine’s Special Envoy for Africa & the Middle East Ambassador Maksym Subhk and South African Ambassador to Ukraine Mr Andre Groenewald.… pic.twitter.com/Jk8V8n2v9O
— Presidency | South Africa ?? (@PresidencyZA) June 16, 2023
A large contingent of specialised police officers including the Presidential Protection Services and a group of journalists were not allowed to disembark the plane at the Warsaw Chopin Airport on despite being in possession of the right permits.
Rhoode told journalists that the South African government obtained all the necessary permits and have been engaging with the Polish government for two weeks.
“They say we do not have permits, however we do have permits, the embassy here made copies of the original permits because they thought it won’t be necessary to have originals.
“All of a sudden we must have originals, they are delaying us, “he said adding that Polish officials wanted to “confiscate our firearms.”
While he couldn’t divulge much about the security of Ramaphosa in Kyiv Rhoode said “the President is being secured”.
The cargo which was offloaded from the plane upon arrival was now being loaded back onto the plane following threats of confiscation.
The United States and Poland are longtime allies and have had strong bilateral ties. The Polish government has been a supporter of continued American military and economic presence in Europe.
South Africa has recently been perceived to have a good relationship with Russia, which has compromised its position with America.
Meanwhile Reuters reports that at least two explosions rocked Kyiv on Friday and air raid sirens blared as African leaders began a peace mission, hoping to mediate between Ukraine and Russia.
A Reuters witness in central Kyiv said he heard two explosions. Mayor Vitali Klitschko also reported explosions in the central Podil district, and warned that more missiles were headed towards the capital.
Another correspondent in the capital saw the smoke trail of two missiles in the air. It was not clear if those missiles were fired by Russia or by Ukrainian air defences.
A Reuters television crew saw the African leaders arriving in Kyiv in a convoy of cars and entering a hotel to use its air-raid shelter.
The leaders had begun their visit with a trip to Bucha, near Kyiv, which is one several places where Ukraine says Russian troops committed large-scale atrocities following their full-scale invasion in February 2022. Russia denies the allegations.
The African peace mission, could propose a series of “confidence building measures” during initial efforts at mediation, according to a draft framework document.
The document states that the objective of the mission is “to promote the importance of peace and to encourage the parties to agree to a diplomacy-led process of negotiations”.
Those measures could include a Russian troop pull-back, removal of tactical nuclear weapons from Belarus, suspension of implementation of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant targeting Putin, and sanctions relief, it indicated.
A cessation of hostilities agreement could follow and would need to be accompanied by negotiations between Russia and the West, the document stated.