Ramaphosa says the country’s police always 'face forward'.
President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africa’s foreign policy is not determined by outside forces and will always be shaped by national interest and constitutional values.
Writing in his weekly newsletter on Monday, Ramaphosa said the country’s police always “face forward.”
‘TICAD is key to our economic diplomacy efforts’
After participating in last week’s ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) in Japan, Ramaphosa said the forum is important for strengthening bilateral trade and investment between Japan and African countries.
“At a time of global trade disruptions and mounting tariff pressures, participating in forums like TICAD is key to our economic diplomacy efforts. Economic diplomacy is an important part of our country’s foreign policy, and has become all the more critical at a time of economic headwinds and global power shifts.
“South Africa’s National Interest Framework Policy Document, published in 2022, is clear that it is in the country’s national interest to forge strategic alliances that support economic partnerships and trading arrangements that favour, advance, and safeguard our national interest,” Ramaphosa said.
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Economic diplomacy
Ramaphosa added that the country’s economic diplomacy is centred on securing market access, attracting investment and promoting sustainable development.
“In the spirit of Kwame Nkrumah’s famous words, ‘We face neither East nor West, we face forward’, South Africa will continue to engage with partners in both the Global North and Global South. Our approach is neither partisan nor beholden, but strategic.
“At a time when our country faces potentially high tariffs imposed by the US administration, we are continuing to put in place measures that reduce our dependence on historical markets,” the president said.
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International trade regime
He said South Africa continues to advocate for an international trade regime that is fair, equitable and rules-based.
“We are seeking a trade regime that does not render developing economies vulnerable to unilateral measures or protectionist pressures.
“Likewise, our foreign policy is anchored in multilateralism, respect for sovereignty and the pursuit of alliances that advance peace, justice and our national interest,” Ramaphosa said.
“South Africa’s foreign policy outlook is not determined by pressure exerted by outside forces, but by principle. It is on principle that we continue to stand with the Palestinian people in their quest for statehood, recognising as we do the pain of dispossession, land theft and state-sanctioned brutality.
“Even when a number of countries criticised us for doing so, and before the full extent of the brutality in Gaza was laid bare, our commitment to peace, justice and the rule of law informed our decision to take Israel to the International Court of Justice,” the president said.
Solidarity
He said South Africa continues to stand in principled solidarity with the peoples of Western Sahara in their struggle for self-determination, even when this has found Pretoria at odds with other countries, including on the African continent.
“On the eve of the democratic transition in 1994, President Mandela described South Africa as being ‘situated at a particular confluence of world affairs’, and uniquely positioned to play an important role as a bridge-builder between the Global South and the developed North.
“For these and other reasons, our approach to diplomacy will continue to be guided by respect for sovereignty, the pursuit of a just and equitable world order, and a firm belief that negotiation and dialogue have a key role to play in the mediation and resolution of conflict,” Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa said the country has lent its support to peace efforts across the continent and beyond, citing efforts of the peace-building process in Lesotho, Burundi, Sudan’s Darfur region, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and also playing a constructive role in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine to foster a ceasefire.
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