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The Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation and the Archbishop Tutu IP Trust say the announcement by the South African government that it is to conduct a joint naval exercise with Russia and China off the coast of Durban next month, is tantamount to a declaration that South Africa is joining the war against Ukraine.
They say in a statement on Facebook that the decision to actively support Russia’s military interests represents the final abandonment by the post-apartheid South African government of the country’s hard-won credentials as a moral bastion and force for human rights.
"When Russia invaded Ukraine last year, and South Africa announced it would maintain a policy of neutrality, we reminded the government of Archbishop Tutu’s wisdom that if you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.", the statement said.
They say South Africa and Russia are geo-political and economic partners in Brics together with Brazil, India, and China and this placed South Africa in the relatively powerful strategic position of being able to push for a negotiated path to sustainable peace.
The Foundation and Trust say President Cyril Ramaphosa must show leadership and pull the plug on the proposed joint naval exercise.
