Russia accuses the US of “trying to influence” South African foreign policy by accusing it of sending weapons to Moscow

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May 16. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The Russian Embassy in Pretoria has accused the United States Administration of “trying to influence” South Africa’s foreign policy by accusing the South African authorities of sending weapons to the Russian Army in the framework of the war against Ukraine.

As highlighted by the Russian legation in Pretoria on Tuesday in a statement, the US ambassador, Reuben Brigety, accused South Africa of sending weapons to Russia without providing evidence to support such accusations beyond his personal conviction.

“Appointing culprits at one’s discretion and resorting to ‘megaphone diplomacy’ have become typical features of US foreign policy,” the Russian Embassy has criticized, admitting that it is no longer surprised by these maneuvers.

“This is not surprising, since the United States seems to have lost its ability to interact with partners on equal terms a long time ago. One’s friendship with the United States is only possible under American rules,” the Russian diplomatic mission lamented.

Thus, the Russian diplomatic authorities have clarified that the weapons produced by South Africa do not match the caliber of Russian weapons and have questioned how such a “miniscule” amount of arms and ammunition supplied by Pretoria to Moscow could influence the conflict.

Along these lines, Russia has questioned Ambassador Brigety why he denounces this alleged shipment of South African arms and ammunition to Moscow but “he feels perfectly fine with the fact that his country and its satellites have been delivering arms to Ukraine since 2014”.

“The total amount of Western military supplies for the Kiev regime has exceeded 100 billion in 2023 –more than 92 billion euros– and Washington has approved a new batch for another 1.2 billion –more than 1.104 million euros- -“, said the Russian Embassy.

The Government of South Africa summoned the US ambassador to the country last Friday to personally convey its discomfort over previous statements in which it accused the South African authorities of allowing the shipment of arms to Russia at the end of 2022.

The US ambassador specifically alluded to a Russian ship that docked at a Cape Town naval base in December 2022, linking it in turn to the war in Ukraine. “We are convinced that she loaded weapons and ammunition (…) before returning to Russia,” he told the media.

South Africa has recently defended its position of “non-alignment” in the Ukrainian conflict and has ensured that this equidistance does not favor the invading country; At the same time, he has rowed in favor of Moscow and kyiv agreeing to receive a delegation from African countries with the aim of finding a peaceful solution to the conflict.