The foreign minister of Germany, Annalena Baerbock, on Tuesday travelled to Pretoria to meet with Naledi Pandor, the foreign minister of South Africa, to discuss the German-South African Binational Commission.
Energy security, climate change, and geopolitical challenges affecting Africa and Europe, notably Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, were among the key topics slated to be covered at the conference.
South Africa has come under fire for taking a neutral position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and for declining to criticise Russia in favour of calling for negotiations between the warring parties.
In an effort to mediate peace talks between the two nations, African leaders met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier in June in Kyiv and Moscow, respectively. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was a member of the delegation.
“This war is, and we have discussed this already, is an attack on the U.N. charter, on the very rules that bind and protect us all,” Baerbock said during Tuesday’s talks. “The African delegation, led by President Cyril Ramaphosa, made this very clear in St. Petersburg. This war also concerns Africa, the UN charter must be respected, and we are thankful for his clear words.”
Globally, the war has had a significant influence on oil prices and food security, with African nations being among the most affected.
“Today we are faced with different and yet equally serious global challenges in Africa and elsewhere in the world, including in Europe, where the war in Ukraine has had global ramifications,” Pandor said.