SA’s ties with Russia and China ‘to top US agenda’

With President Cyril Ramaphosa set to travel to the White House in Washington on Friday after an invitation by United States President Joe Biden, an analyst said the real reason for the visit might be on South Africa’s ties with Russia and China.

Ramaphosa accepted the invitation delivered by the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, during his recent visit to SA.

Department of International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor said Ramaphosa’s visit to the US provided government an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations through engagement and deepen multilateralism through the United Nations.

Pandor said the two leaders would discuss bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest, including trade and investment, climate change, food security, energy, and peace and security.

“President Ramaphosa will reaffirm the importance of the strategic and mutually beneficial relations between South Africa and the United States,” she said.

“These include the urgent need to stimulate economic recovery in the wake of the Covid pandemic.” Everisto Benyera, University of South Africa associate professor of African politics in the department of political sciences, said the most important thing about this meeting was not what was stated on the official agenda but what would be discussed behind closed doors regarding SA’s relationship with Russia and China.

Benyera said the Russia-Ukrainian war and the centrality of SA as a Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) member was also likely to be discussed.

The US is SA’s third-largest trading partner after China and the European Union, with more than 600 American companies operating locally.

“Remember, Blinken was here in SA as well as the US ambassador to the United Nation was also in Ghana, so the US is making every effort to ensure Russia and its president Vladimir Putin are isolated,” he said.

“One of the ways of doing this is to get SA to be less effective in its Brics membership in some of the benefits which are stated as part of the official agenda.”

Political analyst Professor Siphamandla Zondi said SA considered relations with the United States as one of the most important relations. Zondi said it was a “huge” relationship and the US saw SA as its biggest-second trade partner in Africa.

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