The DA accused international relations minister Ronald Lamola of not protecting South Africa's interests by allowing a drill involving Iran.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has issued a strong statement rebuking Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola.
The party accused the minister of allowing the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to dictate the nation’s foreign policy by hosting the Exercise Will for Peace 2026 naval drill.
China is currently leading a naval drill in South African waters featuring Russian and Iranian vessels, an exercise that comes amid a tense international political climate.
The ANC’s government of national unity (GNU) partner took exception to the participation of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is accused of attempting to end civilian protests in Iran using extreme violence.
‘Not a declaration of war’
During the ANC’s birthday celebration week, Lamola gave a keynote address on South Africa’s foreign policy outlook for the coming year.
The speech came days after the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and over a week since anti-government protests began in Iran.
“This moment of great geopolitical strife will determine whether the United Nations delivers on its promise or whether the world returns to the age of the League of Nations. An age of wars, fragmentation and racial hierarchy.
“We hope that stability and peace prevail. If multilateralism is to survive the current geopolitical headwinds, reform is no longer an option,” stated Lamola in Rustenburg.
Having chastised the US for its discarding of multilateralism, Lamola defended the hosting of Chinese, Russian and Iranian militaries.
“We do drills with all the countries, and we have been very clear in South Africa that this drill is not a declaration of war. It is a normal drilling routine that any other country embarks on,” Lamola later told City Press.
‘Moral and ethical abyss’
The DA’s spokesperson for International Relations and Cooperation Ryan Smith stated on Sunday that South Africa’s “ANC ministries” of defence and foreign policy were “leading our country into a moral and ethical abyss”.
Smith noted that Lamola’s ministry was aware in advance that the IRGC was to participate in the naval drill and still allowed the SANDF to proceed.
“Minister Lamola has effectively outsourced South Africa’s foreign policy to the whims of the SANDF, exposing the country to serious diplomatic and economic risk.
“This open defiance is a blatant abdication of Minister Lamola’s responsibility to the Republic, and brings into sharp question South Africa’s status as a non-aligned actor on the international stage,” stated Smith.
He called for Lamola to withdraw South African vessels from the naval drill, facilitate the urgent departure of Iranian vessels and exercise oversight over all military engagements.
“South Africa’s foreign policy must serve the constitution and the national interest, not the ANC’s three-world typology nostalgia or the ambitions of authoritarian allies,” Smith concluded.
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