By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa will travel to Washington this week as President Joe Biden administration looks to draw African nations closer to the US at a time when South Africa and many of its neighbours have staked out neutral ground on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The administration has been disappointed that South Africa and much of the continent have declined to follow the US in condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
South Africa abstained in a United Nations vote to condemn Russia’s action, and Ramaphosa has avoided any criticism of Russia and has instead called for a mediated peace.
Ramaphosa accepted the invitation delivered by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his recent visit to South Africa.
He will hold talks at the White House with Biden on 16 September 2022.
At a media briefing on Monday, International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor suggested that Ramaphosa would not buckle or shift from SA’s stance that a peaceful and dialogue-driven resolution to the war must be sought.
Ramaphosa would “most definitely” emphasise the need for enhanced multilateralism and dialogue as a means through which challenges facing humanity can be addressed, she said.
Pandor, also said the President’s visit to the US provides the government with an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations through engagement and deepen multilateralism through the United Nations (UN), a primary vehicle through which the international community must confront the challenges facing the world.
The two leaders, according to Pandor, will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest, including:
- Trade and investment
- Climate change
- Food security
- Energy, and
- Peace and security.
“Ramaphosa will reaffirm the importance of the strategic and mutually beneficial relations between South Africa and the United States,” she said on Monday, adding that the First Citizen will emphasise the need for enhanced multilateralism and dialogue, through which the challenges facing humanity can be addressed.
“These include the urgent need to stimulate economic recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Pandor told media that Ramaphosa and his delegation will also meet congressional leadership and veterans of the civil rights movements, who were instrumental in lobbying Americans against apartheid and remain loyal to the cause of anti-racism in both countries.
The US is a major export market for South Africa, a significant source of foreign direct investment (FDI), technology transfer, development assistance and tourism.
“Trade and investment relations take place under the auspices of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which grants duty-free and quota-free access to the US market for value-added products,” Pandor explained, adding that AGOA has created jobs in both countries.
Over the years, Pandor said the two-way trade between South Africa and the US has been on the surge.
The US is South Africa’s third largest trading partner after China and the European Union, with more than 600 American companies operating locally.
In 2021, the US ranked as the second largest destination for South Africa’s exports globally.
“South African firms have also become significant foreign investors in the US,” Pandor said.
Investments from South Africa into the US are also on the rise, with America accounting for 17.4% of total South African outward FDI to the world.
“South Africa’s foreign policy remains inspired by its history. The country, working with others, strives for the attainment of a just, humane and equitable world.
“In conducting our international relations, we attach the utmost importance to promoting human rights, democracy, equitable justice and the rule of international law. The said principles place multilateral institutions, specifically the United Nations, at the centre of our foreign policy engagements and objectives,” said Pandor.
The Minister also announced that South Africa will take part in the high-level segment of the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the UN headquarters in New York from 20 to 27 September 2022.
The meetings will take part under the theme, ‘A watershed moment: Unlocking transformative solutions to interlocking challenges’, and focus on development matters, specifically health, education and the broader implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“For the global South, the economic and socio-economic impact of COVID-19 has been disproportionately about recovery in the developed North,” said Pandor.
Preceding the general debate, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, will convene a summit on ‘Transforming Education’, while discussing several climate-related matters and the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.