US says South Africa provided russia with weapons for war against Ukraine
Weapons were transported on the russian ship Lady R, refusing to say what cargo it was carrying
South Africa supplied weapons to russia, despite claims of neutrality on the issue of russia's invasion of Ukraine, US Ambassador to South Africa Reuben Brigety said, citing intelligence data.
Source. This was reported by News24.
According to him, the supply was carried out by a russian ship, which was located at the Simonstown Naval Base in Cape Town from December 6 to 8, 2022.
"We believe it was loaded with weapons and ammunition before returning to russia," Brigety said.
He emphasized that the US government takes this very seriously and would like South Africa to adhere to the policy of nonalignment with the conflict. When asked how accurate the US intelligence data is about the shipment of weapons to russia, Brigety said he would bet his life on it.
The ship in question is the Lady R, which belongs to the russian shipping company MG-Flot LLC. The Wall Street Journal wrote that the ship's entry into a South African port in December caused complications in relations between the United States and South Africa. At the time, South Africa refused to disclose what the ship was carrying and what cargo it received at the Simonstown base.
A senior U.S. official told the newspaper that Washington was concerned about the support the South African Armed Forces provided to the Lady R, including allowing the ship to enter the naval base and move cargo with the automatic identification system disabled.
South Africa abstained from condemning russia during the UN vote after the war began. The country's President Cyril Ramaphosa stated the need to resolve the conflict through negotiations.
South African authorities found themselves in a difficult position after the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant for russian dictator vladimir putin on charges of deporting Ukrainian children. Earlier, the republic's leadership was going to invite him to the BRICS summit to be held in Durban in August.
Background. As a reminder, the South African authorities are asking putin not to attend the BRICS summit, otherwise they will have to arrest him.
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