South Africa: The most ideal partner for Russia in Africa.
2021-04-19 11:15:39
Central documents are Joint Declaration on the Establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Russian Federation and the Republic of South Africa, signed during the working visit of President Vladimir Putin to the RSA timed to BRICS Summit in Durban in March 2013 and the Treaty on Friendship and Partnership concluded within the official visit of President of Russia Vladimir Putin to the RSA in September 2016.
The inaugural of Russia-Africa summit on 23rd – 24th October 2019 in Sochi, Russia, was attended by His Excellency South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and more than 40 of the continent’s leaders, in which, according to African National Congress-led administration statement, “the Southern African regional power expected to deepen friendly relations between the Russian Federation and countries of the African continent at both bilateral and multilateral levels, forge closer collaboration on regional and international issues of common interest, raise strategic dialogue between Russia and African countries to a qualitatively higher level, and contribute to peace, security and sustainable development on the African continent.”
“Iron Brothers”
Although diplomatic relations between the Russian Federation and the Republic of South Africa were established on 28 February 1992 – the cooperation between Russian Federation and Southern African country has always been pragmatic and history bears witness to the fact that both countries need to deepen their ties further and unlock hidden potential.
South Africa and Russian Federation relations are founded on a solid legal cooperative mechanism of about 70 various documents and covers the spheres of investment protection, double taxation avoidance, energy, agriculture, exploration, mining and procession of natural resources, intellectual property, anti-drugs initiatives etc.
Central documents are Joint Declaration on the Establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Russian Federation and the Republic of South Africa, signed during the working visit of President Vladimir Putin to the RSA timed to BRICS Summit in Durban in March 2013 and the Treaty on Friendship and Partnership concluded within the official visit of President of Russia Vladimir Putin to the RSA in September 2016.
The African National Congress (ANC), the governing party, came to power in 1994. It had been receiving all-round assistance, including military aid from the USSR for more than forty years. In 1969 Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the military wing of African National Congress (ANC), was on the verge of disaster in Tanzania (Kongwa camp), when hundreds of its Soviet Union trained fighters were saved by evacuation to the USSR. Fast-forward twenty-seven years later since the first democratic elections, they dominate the ruling cabinet and some of them are still holding positions in the South Africa’s government.
New Dawn or Unpredictable Future?
According to Alexandra Arkhangelskaya, South Africa has largely not been able to meet its stated goals and even seen some of its influence in Africa and abroad diminishing as new actors emerge with varying histories and development models. The country had arguably also become preoccupied by its own domestic challenges, ceding ground to other actors on the continent. It is thus acknowledged that whilst taking up important positions, its influence on the continent and beyond was in relative decline.
However, this is a position that the current administration is seeking to reverse, beginning with the process of rebuilding institutions and their credibility at home. In doing that, the country is also seeking to regain its position on the international landscape under the leadership of President Ramaphosa, who has ushered in what is being referred to as a “new dawn”.
On the South Africa-European Union relations, Arkhangelskaya observes that contemporary dynamics of trading partners are also characterised by a significant foreign policy divergence between South Africa and its European counterparts – especially over the handling of the socio-political crisis, which engulfed Zimbabwe following successive disputed elections and a chaotic land redistribution process. Disagreements displayed here would expose important foreign policy divergences in the relationship between South Africa and Europe.
Furthermore, South Africa’s 2016 move to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC) would also lead to political divergences between South Africa and the EU despite healthy relations in a variety of sectors such as trade and investment, health, education, science and technology. This however remains unimplemented, and the country remains a member of the ICC.
Arkhangelskaya further notes that South Africa’s foreign policy interests with the EU are thus as much about attracting important FDI into South Africa as they are about ensuring that the EU supports Africa’s Pan-African institutions such as the African Union (AU) and regional economic communities such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
On the contrary, the cooperation between Russian Federation and South Africa has always been pragmatic, for example, in the sphere of foreign and economic policy, both nations coordinate close approaches towards shaping a world order based on multipolar principles and respect for international law, strengthening of the United Nation’s leading role, settling regional conflicts, and countering terrorism are characteristics of both Moscow and Pretoria.
It is widely expected therefore that the Joint Inter-Governmental Committee on Trade and Economic Cooperation (ITEC), key coordination mechanism of bilateral collaboration between two parties is further intensified across different spheres of strategic sectors of the economy, i.e., communications, security, finance, and energy. The Russian accumulated investments in South Africa are estimated at 1,5 billion USD, whereas the volume of South African investments exceeds 5 billion USD. From these accumulative figures, it is apparent that Pretoria is an ideal partner for Russia and it is upon the former therefore to define the key objectives, tasks, and measures in the sphere of “Strategic National Priorities and National Security”, in so doing, Pretoria will recalibrate its strategic position in the region and continent respectively.
Concluding thoughts
Indeed, the absence of “all-weather” attributes in the EU-South African relations, unpredictable foreign policy orientation of both former and the latter, reinforced by their inability to pursue independent policies from “Washington” could widen the divergence gap in the likely event African National Congress-led government embarks on “long overdue” plans for radical transformation of Means of Production.
“Iron Brothers”
Although diplomatic relations between the Russian Federation and the Republic of South Africa were established on 28 February 1992 – the cooperation between Russian Federation and Southern African country has always been pragmatic and history bears witness to the fact that both countries need to deepen their ties further and unlock hidden potential.
South Africa and Russian Federation relations are founded on a solid legal cooperative mechanism of about 70 various documents and covers the spheres of investment protection, double taxation avoidance, energy, agriculture, exploration, mining and procession of natural resources, intellectual property, anti-drugs initiatives etc.
Central documents are Joint Declaration on the Establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the Russian Federation and the Republic of South Africa, signed during the working visit of President Vladimir Putin to the RSA timed to BRICS Summit in Durban in March 2013 and the Treaty on Friendship and Partnership concluded within the official visit of President of Russia Vladimir Putin to the RSA in September 2016.
The African National Congress (ANC), the governing party, came to power in 1994. It had been receiving all-round assistance, including military aid from the USSR for more than forty years. In 1969 Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the military wing of African National Congress (ANC), was on the verge of disaster in Tanzania (Kongwa camp), when hundreds of its Soviet Union trained fighters were saved by evacuation to the USSR. Fast-forward twenty-seven years later since the first democratic elections, they dominate the ruling cabinet and some of them are still holding positions in the South Africa’s government.
New Dawn or Unpredictable Future?
According to Alexandra Arkhangelskaya, South Africa has largely not been able to meet its stated goals and even seen some of its influence in Africa and abroad diminishing as new actors emerge with varying histories and development models. The country had arguably also become preoccupied by its own domestic challenges, ceding ground to other actors on the continent. It is thus acknowledged that whilst taking up important positions, its influence on the continent and beyond was in relative decline.
However, this is a position that the current administration is seeking to reverse, beginning with the process of rebuilding institutions and their credibility at home. In doing that, the country is also seeking to regain its position on the international landscape under the leadership of President Ramaphosa, who has ushered in what is being referred to as a “new dawn”.
On the South Africa-European Union relations, Arkhangelskaya observes that contemporary dynamics of trading partners are also characterised by a significant foreign policy divergence between South Africa and its European counterparts – especially over the handling of the socio-political crisis, which engulfed Zimbabwe following successive disputed elections and a chaotic land redistribution process. Disagreements displayed here would expose important foreign policy divergences in the relationship between South Africa and Europe.
Furthermore, South Africa’s 2016 move to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC) would also lead to political divergences between South Africa and the EU despite healthy relations in a variety of sectors such as trade and investment, health, education, science and technology. This however remains unimplemented, and the country remains a member of the ICC.
Arkhangelskaya further notes that South Africa’s foreign policy interests with the EU are thus as much about attracting important FDI into South Africa as they are about ensuring that the EU supports Africa’s Pan-African institutions such as the African Union (AU) and regional economic communities such as the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
On the contrary, the cooperation between Russian Federation and South Africa has always been pragmatic, for example, in the sphere of foreign and economic policy, both nations coordinate close approaches towards shaping a world order based on multipolar principles and respect for international law, strengthening of the United Nation’s leading role, settling regional conflicts, and countering terrorism are characteristics of both Moscow and Pretoria.
It is widely expected therefore that the Joint Inter-Governmental Committee on Trade and Economic Cooperation (ITEC), key coordination mechanism of bilateral collaboration between two parties is further intensified across different spheres of strategic sectors of the economy, i.e., communications, security, finance, and energy. The Russian accumulated investments in South Africa are estimated at 1,5 billion USD, whereas the volume of South African investments exceeds 5 billion USD. From these accumulative figures, it is apparent that Pretoria is an ideal partner for Russia and it is upon the former therefore to define the key objectives, tasks, and measures in the sphere of “Strategic National Priorities and National Security”, in so doing, Pretoria will recalibrate its strategic position in the region and continent respectively.
Concluding thoughts
Indeed, the absence of “all-weather” attributes in the EU-South African relations, unpredictable foreign policy orientation of both former and the latter, reinforced by their inability to pursue independent policies from “Washington” could widen the divergence gap in the likely event African National Congress-led government embarks on “long overdue” plans for radical transformation of Means of Production.
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