South Africa's military has defended its decision to host controversial naval drills with Russia and China that began on Wednesday shortly before the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and are worrying Westerners.
"
There is a difference between the military and the political
," said General Siphiwe Sangweni, head of joint operations within the South African armed forces, during a press conference at the port of Richards Bay (east).
The army is "
guided by the government
" but must also learn new skills from other armies to protect the country and contribute to international peacekeeping missions, he said.
"
Other countries will certainly have a different approach than us
" to these joint exercises with Russia and China, but "
each country is sovereign and has the right to manage things as it considers they should be
", said he pointed out.
"
Cooperation and coordination with all the other armies is something very important to us
," added General Sangweni.
“Sharing Skills”
South Africa announced last month the organization of these joint exercises with the Russian and Chinese Marines “
with the aim of sharing operational skills and knowledge
”, specifying that Russia was the pilot country.
The operations, which involve more than 350 South African soldiers, are to continue for several days off Durban (southeast), the largest port in southern Africa on the Indian Ocean, and Richards Bay, some 180 km further north.
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A Russian military frigate equipped with Zircon hypersonic missiles and a Chinese warship are to participate in particular.
South Africa has said it has taken a neutral stance since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine nearly a year ago, refusing to join Western calls to condemn Moscow and saying it prefers dialogue to end the war.
These joint naval exercises with Russia are causing concern in the United States and the European Union, which consider them particularly inappropriate a few days before the first anniversary of the Russian invasion launched on February 24.
