SA needs to show some balance on Ukraine

First we abstained at the UN General Assembly when it passed a resolution condemning Russian aggression, demanding that it withdraw troops from its neighbour Ukraine’s territory. Then we tried to sponsor a controversial resolution on ending the conflict without mentioning Russia as the aggressor.

When our minister of international relations & co-operation, Naledi Pandor, issued a statement calling on Russia to withdraw its troops, President Cyril Ramaphosa was reported to be unhappy, causing her department to adopt a softer line.

Now we are bickering with the Ukrainian embassy over a long overdue call between our president and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky. Because Ramaphosa has already been on a call with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, there is a perception that Zelensky is deliberately being snubbed.

Ukraine’s ambassador to SA, Liubov Abravitova, took to Twitter to express her frustration over trying to secure a meeting with Ramaphosa and Pandor. The ambassador said she was forced to go public because Pandor’s department had ignored her.

Abravitova said that on February 24, shortly after the conflict started, she requested a call between the two presidents and their foreign ministers. Clayson Monyela, spokesperson for the department of international relations & co-operation, insists the delay is the fault of the Ukrainians.

Both sides are behaving in an unbecoming, undiplomatic and abhorrent way. The ambassador might rightly feel frustrated, but Twitter is not the space to express this.

We are not sure if Zelensky is keen to speak to Ramaphosa. However, if he has indeed expressed an interest, there is no harm in getting them together on a call. SA has repeatedly called for a peaceful resolution of the conflict; it needs to show its commitment to this by hearing all sides.