President Cyril Ramaphosa has held talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, about the return of South Africans who were apparently lured into fighting for Russia in Ukraine.
Early in November, Pretoria received distress calls for assistance to return home the 17 South African men who are trapped in the war-torn Donbas, Ukraine.
‘Hired guns’
The men, who come from KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) and one from the Eastern Cape, were allegedly lured to join mercenary forces involved in the Ukraine-Russia war under the pretext of lucrative employment contracts.
The Ukrainian embassy in Pretoria denied the hired guns were fighting for them, while the Russian embassy refused to comment.
Under the Foreign Military Assistance Act of 1998, it is illegal for South African citizens and entities to offer or provide military assistance to foreign governments or participate in armies of foreign governments, unless authorised by the South African government.
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Phone call
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, said the president had a telephone call with Putin on Monday, during which the Russian president briefed him on the situation in Ukraine and Russia’s commitment to a diplomatic solution.
“President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed South Africa’s ongoing support for diplomatic and peaceful efforts aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict. This is in line with South Africa’s long-standing position, during talks with both sides, that all wars end through negotiation.
“President Ramaphosa and President Putin pledged their support to the process of returning South Africans fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. In this regard, teams from both sides will continue their engagements towards the finalisation of this process,” Magwenya said.
Bilateral relations
Magwenya added that Ramaphosa also discussed the bilateral relationship between the two countries and welcomed the engagements with Russia aimed at advancing the development of a mutually beneficial trade and investment framework within the Russia-South Africa comprehensive strategic partnership.Â
He said the two leaders also discussed cooperation in key international fora such as Brics and the G20.
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