South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, has blamed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), for Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, claiming that the organization’s eastward expansion was doomed to boomerang. ayokinews.com reports
Ramaphosa, speaking at a South African parliament session on Friday, suggested that the conflict in Ukraine might have been averted if NATO had followed warnings.
“The war could have been avoided if NATO had heeded the warnings from amongst its own leaders and officials over the years that its eastward expansion will lead to greater, not less instability in the region,” he said.
The South African president noted that NATO disregarded the agreement it had established, which had maintained the balance of power between the two blocs.
‘This was also based on agreements that had been arrived at in the past by various parties.’
Ramaphosa, however, condemned the aggression of Putin in invading Ukraine on February 24th saying “while it is important to articulate the various causes of the conflict and advocate for peacebuilding measures, we cannot, however, condone the use of force or violations of international laws.”
On February 24, Putin launched a military campaign against Ukraine, claiming that his purpose was to defend ethnic-Russians people who had experienced persecution and genocide at the hands of Kyiv’s leadership for the past 8 years.
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Putin, however, urged Ukrainian soldiers to lay down their weapons and defend the Russian operation by alleging that the government was committing “genocide” in the country’s east.
The Kremlin had previously claimed that rebel commanders in eastern Ukraine had requested military assistance from Moscow in their fight against Kyiv.
Like other countries, South Africa is deeply concerned about the direct impacts of financial markets on its economy, as well as inflationary pressures caused by rising food and gasoline costs.
Ramaphosa also emphasized the importance of a dynamic solution to world peace, citing a flaw in the UN’s framework.
“The conflict in Ukraine demonstrates the need for a multi-lateral approach to issues of peace and security.” he said.
“It also demonstrates the weaknesses in the structure and practices and architecture of the United Nations, the composition of the UN council, in particular, does not reflect the realities of the prevailing global landscape,” he said.
