The foundation called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to stop all planned joint military exercises by the SA with Russia and China.
- The Desmond and Leah Tutu Foundation and the Archbishop Tutu Trust have called on Cyril Ramaphosa to cancel planned military exercises with Russia and China.
- They said that the association of SA with Russia is tantamount to supporting the war in Ukraine.
- He said SA resources would be better spent addressing domestic needs, including power outages and inequality.
The Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation and the Archbishop Desmond Tutu IP Trust called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to show leadership by stopping all planned joint military exercises by the SA with Russia and China.
The foundation and the trust issued a joint statement on Friday in response to the exercise, called Operation Mosi, meaning smoke, which will take place between February 17 and 26.
The groups said South Africa’s affiliation with Russia deviates from its neutral stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
He said the joint naval exercises were “tantamount to a declaration that South Africa is joining the war against Ukraine on Russia’s side.”
The spokesman for the South African National Defense Force (SANDF), Brigadier General Andries Mahapa, said on Thursday that the maritime exercise was a “means to strengthen the already flourishing relations between South Africa, Russia and China.”
He said more than 350 SANDF personnel will participate alongside their Russian and Chinese counterparts “with the aim of sharing operational skills and knowledge.”
READ | Missile fragments found in Moldova near Ukrainian border as Russia launches another bombing raid
Last year, South Africa abstained during a UN General Assembly motion to rebuke Russia, a position widely criticized by the official opposition, among others.
The foundation and trust said South Africa’s support for the resolution, which called for Russia’s withdrawal from Ukraine, could have allowed for effective negotiations for peace between the warring countries.
“Resources and effort would be better spent providing the country with stable electricity, or providing services that begin to reduce unsustainable inequality and improve the quality of life for masses of very poor people,” the statement read.
He said that if the price of membership of the country’s Brics was to “lose your integrity”, then the price was too high.
“President Cyril Ramaphosa must show leadership and pull the plug on the proposed joint naval exercise. There is a slim window of opportunity to prevent South Africa from reverting back to its apartheid state like a skunk.”
