South Africa had no ‘capacity’ to arrest Putin, says Mapaila
The incumbent Secretary General of the South African Communist Party, Solly Mapaila, has said that the government did not have the capacity to arrest Russian president Putin. Mapaila was reacting to the statement that Foreign Minister Mr. Sergey Lavrov will represent Putin in the BRICS summit. “Russia is a big world country. Who can touch […]
The incumbent Secretary General of the South African Communist Party, Solly Mapaila, has said that the government did not have the capacity to arrest Russian president Putin. Mapaila was reacting to the statement that Foreign Minister Mr. Sergey Lavrov will represent Putin in the BRICS summit.
“Russia is a big world country. Who can touch such a country? From a military, intellectual, and scientific development, they are at the same level as the US. Do you think that we can just go blindly to declare war on Russia? It’s crazy. We don’t have a single military capacity, just from a perspective of defense, let’s be serious,” said Mapaila.
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Speaking during the BRICS Political Parties Plus dialogue, Mapaila voiced that the decision of President Putin not to come was highly considered and appreciated. According to him, Russia is not at the same level as the European countries in terms of infrastructure.
Mixed reactions had been voiced regarding the Putin issue. The majority of people commended the government’s decision saying that it will help avert an embarrassment to the state, similar to Omar Al Bashir in 2015.
The SACP secretary general said that Putin demonstrated the highest level of statesmanship by sending a representative to BRICS despite provocation from the West. “The actions that the Russians, particularly President Putin, have taken have demonstrated understanding and show the highest level of statesmanship,” he said.
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ECONOMIC SANCTIONS FEARS
According to Timeslive, Mapaila expressed his concern at the risk of financial sanctions should countries defy the West. He admitted that he did not have a briefing from the president but believed that the South African government was going to finally give in at a point.
“The point is we are going to suffer more. The Europeans today are pulling out more sanctions. We have ministers who are planning sanctions every day against countries that they do not agree with, like Venezuela, Cuba, Russia, and China,” said Mapaila.
However, he said that a multipolar system is possible, with numerous social-economic systems that countries could choose from. He concluded that his comments should not be interpreted as SACP picking a side on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He urged the government to reflect on the Putin matter and use the lessons to develop its own instruments of development.
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