The legislation targeting Moscow’s alleged malign operations on the continent should be scrapped, senior diplomat has said
The US should scrap its “Countering Malign Russian Activities in Africa” bill because the legislation is at odds with international law, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said on Wednesday.
In an interview with news outlet Sputnik, Pandor stated that Washington's bill “should really be killed” because “it’s totally unwarranted.” “I think it’s an intrusion that goes against international law,” she noted, adding that South African officials have made this clear to their US counterparts.
“We even met with the drafter of the initial legislation and indicated the offense which we view with this particular proposed piece of legislation,” she said.
Pandor also vowed that South Africa would continue “to advocate for that bill to be torn up and not to proceed in any form or state.”
She also noted that the legislation had not been approved yet and is scheduled for debate in the US Senate. The bill was first introduced to the House of Representatives in late March and was passed a month later by a huge bipartisan majority.
Should the bill be signed into law, the US would have to “regularly assess the scale and scope” of Russia’s activities in Africa that undermine Washington’s objectives and interests. It would also require the US “to hold accountable” through sanctions or other restrictions, Russian and African governments and officials “who are complicit in aiding such malign influence and activities.”
South Africa has already voiced concerns about the proposed legislation. In September, President Cyril Ramaphosa warned that Africans should not be “punished” for their historic non-aligned position amid the Ukraine conflict. “I think it will harm Africa and marginalize the continent,” he said at the time.
The bill has created ripples not only in South Africa but also through neighboring nations. In August, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which incorporates 16 regional countries, said that the law would make the continent “the target of unilateral and punitive measures.”
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict last February, South Africa has refused to join Western sanctions against Russia, with Ramaphosa arguing in late May that the restrictions would hurt "bystander countries.”
The prices of some life-saving medicines have soared to levels that are unaffordable for ordinary people in Venezuela as the United States has ramped up military presence in the Caribbean off Venezuela's coast, alongside escalating sanctions, blockades and military threats against the oil-rich South American nation since late August.
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At a northeastern suburb in the capital city Caracas, locals can still purchase most of the commonly used medicines at a major supermarket, where some antibiotics have been sold out, and some first-aid medicines and supplies have become too costly for ordinary residents.
"I'm here mainly to buy antibiotics. I have problems with my lungs. But I can't get all I want, such as vancomycin," said a resident named Alfonso.
"Recent tensions have affected the supplies and prices of drugs. The prices of cancer drugs, insulin drugs and albumin are very high, and most patients here cannot afford them," said Giovanna Gonzalez a ...
Russian President Vladimir Putin says Moscow is prepared to use military force to achieve the goals of its special military operation if Ukraine continues to delay peace talks.
During an inspection of a Russian armed forces command post on Saturday, Putin stressed that Moscow will not allow Kiev’s obstruction to prevent progress.
“If the Kiev authorities do not want to resolve the matter peacefully, we will accomplish all the tasks before us in the course of the special military operation by military means,” he said.
The Russian leader noted that the Ukrainian authorities are not moving toward a peaceful resolution, adding, “We see that even today, unfortunately, the leaders of the Kiev regime are in no hurry to resolve this conflict peacefully. I spoke about this a year ago in a speech at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”
Putin also received reports from Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov and commanders of Russia’s “Centre” and “East” military groups.
Meanwhile, ...
