South Africa has taken a firm stance on the ongoing tension between Russia and Ukraine, urging the warring parties to find a peaceful solution and stop the armed conflict.
In a statement released on Thursday, International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor called on the UN Security Council [UNSC] to play a central role to broker a peace deal. “All parties have much to gain from a negotiated outcome and much to lose from an unnecessary and violent conflict,” Pandor said.
“The UNSC is the body given the mandate for the maintenance of international peace and security and it must exercise its role fully. As South Africa, we believe all the issues of concern to any of the parties must be addressed in inclusive talks led by the UNSG.
“The world does not need another war as that will result in death and destruction, hence our call for enhanced diplomacy.”
The tension between the two countries has seen the rand falling significantly as unpredictability led to a worldwide sell-off.
Rising up to near R15/dollar after a broadly positive national Budget speech on Wednesday afternoon, the rand dropped by more than 30c after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a military strike on Ukraine.
Oil soared more than 3.5% and surpassed $100 (R1 523) a barrel on Thursday for the first time in seven years.
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