For the first time since the end of apartheid, the African National Congress party does not have an outright majority to govern South Africa. What might that do to the country’s long-standing policy of “nonalignment”? How does it see its role on an increasingly multipolar world stage?
FP’s Ravi Agrawal sat down with Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s recently appointed minister of international relations and cooperation. They discuss South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, how the country manages its relationship with its BRICS partner Russia, and its leadership role in Africa.
Video clips from this event
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Ronald Lamola explains why his country had a moral obligation to bring a genocide case against Israel to the International Court of Justice, arguing that Israel had “exceeded the boundaries of self-defense.”
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South Africa has been accused of a double standard in how it confronts Israel versus Russia. Lamola explains why he sees the two conflicts differently: “There is a long wounded history with regard to the Israeli siege of Gaza … the Ukraine-Russia conflict, is a relatively new conflict.”
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Does South Africa condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine? Lamola hedges: “It’s not as simple as that.”
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South Africa is a member of the BRICS bloc alongside much-sanctioned states such as Russia and Iran. Lamola explains why those relationships are mutually beneficial.
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Lamola explains the efforts that South Africa is making to alleviate the conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
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Although the U.S. proposal for permanent African representation on the U.N. Security Council does not include veto power, Lamola welcomes it as a “step in the right direction.”
