/RUSSIA: Snr ANC Members Discuss "Recalibration Of Global Order" During Trip To Russia

The African National Congress (ANC) confirmed in a statement on Saturday evening that several of its senior members were on a "working visit" to Moscow, as South Africa's ruling party seeks to boost its ties with the main force in Russia's parliament, which provides legislative support to President Vladimir Putin.

• The ANC said that its members, including deputy head of the parliamentary International Relations Subcomittee and Deputy Foreign Minister, were meeting with representatives of the United Russia party, its "long-standing ally and friend," to discuss "the recalibration of the global order to reverse the consequence of neo-colonialism and the previously prevailing unipolar world."
• Weekend talks represent yet another instance of high-level bilateral contacts between South African and Russian ruling elites. Only in the recent weeks, the two countries held joint naval drills off the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, while National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqalula led a delegation of lawmakers to a parliamentary conference in Moscow.
• Intensified bilateral contacts between South African and Russian officials highlight the difficulties with isolating Russia over its ongoing invasion of Ukraine, as Moscow is doubling down on efforts to strengthen its relations with the global South.
• South Africa has refused to take sides on the Russo-Ukrainian war and claims to be taking a non-aligned stance. News24 reports that the ANC delegation did not condemn the invasion during the weekend talks, "because South Africa was not partisan on the matter."