Aziz Pahad, Pretoria
18 May 2007
Deputy Minister Aziz Pahad: Middle East
Let me first of all start with the area that continues to threaten
international peace and stability, namely the Middle East region. As we said in
our statement yesterday, we are extremely concerned about the continuing
violent clashes between armed Palestinian factions affiliated to the Fatah
Movement and the Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) in Palestine. We regret
the deaths of 44 Palestinians over the last five days coming in the wake of
efforts by the Arab League to boost the Arab Peace Initiative on the
international scene.
It is the view of the South African Government that the Palestinian
infighting would complicate the quest for peace by drawing the attention away
from this critical opportunity to take the peace process forward. The South
African Government therefore joins calls by both Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas and Prime Minister Ismael Haniyeh for efforts to keep the Palestinian
Government of National Unity intact. The collapse of the National Unity
Government would only serve the interests of those who do not want to see
Israelis and Palestinians living in peace with each other, in separate states
within internationally recognised borders. South Africa, accordingly, calls on
all Palestinians to end the violence and re-focus the Palestinian leadership on
the peace process. South Africa calls on the international community not to be
seen to intervene on either side, while asking for the lifting of sanctions to
help deal with the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding.
Democratic Republic of Congo
Acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, the United Nations
Security Council (UNSC) has decided to extend the deployment of the United
Nations Organisation mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC)
until Monday, 31 December 2007, and authorised the continuation until that date
of up to 17 030 military personnel, 760 military observers, 391 police trainers
and 750 personnel of formed police units. Unanimously adopting resolution 1756
(2007), the Council also decided that MONUC would have the mandate to help the
Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo establish a stable security
environment in the country to help build a stable political situation.
Burundi
Minister Charles Nqakula, the Facilitator of the Burundi Peace Process and
Ambassador Kingsley Mamabolo, the Special Envoy to the Great Lakes travelled to
Burundi from Friday, 11 May 2007 to Sunday, 13 May 2007 to assist in unblocking
the negotiations that had stalled. The Palipehutu Forces for National
Liberation (Palipehutu-FNL) was demanding that before it agrees with the
implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement, certain conditions should be met and
this amounts to the following:
* possible placement of their senior leadership in Cabinet and Senate
* that a concurrence be reached on the Forces Technical Agreement.
It will be recalled that during the Ceasefire Agreement the Palipehutu-FNL
had called for the dismantling of the Burundi Army on grounds that the Army had
been corrupted and was committing acts of violence and human rights abuses. The
Palipehutu-FNL is therefore advocating for an agreement that would secure the
integration of their forces and at the same time transform the army into a
transparent and democratic institution. The position of Burundi is that it
cannot enter into another round of negotiations.
The government argues that a ceasefire agreement has been reached and what
is left is to ensure its implementation. However, President Nkurunziza, in
recent discussions with the facilitation indicated his readiness to meet
Chairman Agathon Rwasa of Palipehutu-FNL to discuss issues raised. He has
emphasised his willingness to accommodate some of Palipehutu-FNL's concerns as
long as their requests do not demand that the violation of the
Constitution.
The facilitation is now in the process of negotiating a possible meeting
between the Palipehutu-FNL and government to discuss matters which now appear
to be outside the ceasefire agreement and therefore not within the mandate of
the facilitation. The facilitation is also consulting with Presidents Yoweri
Museveni and Jakaya Kikwete, Chairperson and Deputy Chair of the Regional
Initiative of the Burundi Peace Process respectively. It is important for the
process to move faster, we should ensure that we have sufficient resources to
sustain the progress made.
Western Sahara
The status of the Western Sahara has been reviewed by the United Nations
(UN) each year since 1964. The question of Western Sahara remains at an impasse
and there continues to be a lack of agreement on how to enable the people of
Western Sahara to exercise their right of self-determination. On Monday, 30
April 2007, United Nations Security Council members unanimously adopted
Resolution 1754 (2007) urging Morocco and the Polisario Front to open
unconditional talks on the disputed Western Sahara region under the supervision
of the United Nations "with a view to achieving a just, lasting and mutually
acceptable political solution, which will provide for the self-determination of
the people of Western Sahara." The resolution also includes the extension of
the mandate of Minurso, the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, to
Wednesday, 31 October 2007.
Developments in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Kosovo
The European Union (EU) and the United States (US) on Friday, 11 May 2007
circulated the text of a draft resolution on the status of Kosovo. The text
reflects their conviction that the Ahtisaari Plan holds the best solution to
the situation in Kosovo. The draft resolution entails:
* endorses the Ahtisaari Plan
* supersedes resolution 1244 (1999)
* calls for the replacement of the United Nations (UN) presence by an
International Presence
* recognises the uniqueness of Kosovo
* states that resolving the Kosovo issue is a matter of international peace and
security
* calls for regular reports to the Security Council.
The resolution is to be adopted under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, which
means that it will be legally binding on all Member States. Negotiations on the
draft resolution will start soon and it is anticipated that the matter will be
finalised by the end of May 2007.
The Russian Federation has distributed elements of a possible resolution but
these have not as yet been translated into a formal draft text. We have noted
the visit by the US Secretary of State to Moscow on Tuesday, 15 May 2007 during
which she discussed the issue of Kosovo with President Putin. Ms Rice has
commented that she understands the concerns of Russia about Kosovo,
particularly the Serbian minority, concerning what some see as to have the
potential for a precedent by Kosovo's independence. And we are going to try and
work through these in the resolution. But ultimately time has come to make what
is de jure, de facto. South Africa is also awaiting the outcome of the
EU-Russia Summit.
In preparation for this, South Africa has consulted widely and has received
visits from:
* Mr Martti Ahtisaari, the architect of the plan for Kosovo's future
status
* the Foreign Minister of Serbia
* the Serbian Orthodox Bishop of Kosovo
* Mr Ylber Hysa of the Kosovo Status Negotiating Team
* Minister Dlamini Zuma also met with the President of Kosovo, Dr Fatmir Sejdiu
in Brussels on Monday, 14 May 2007. We have also consulted widely at the United
Nations.
South AfricanâEuropean Union Ministerial Troika, Brussels, Belgium
On Monday, 14 May 2007, Minister Dlamini Zuma supported by a Senior
Ministerial Delegation participated in the South African- European Union
Ministerial Troika which was co-chaired by Minister Dlamini Zuma and her
counterpart, Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The EU Troika was also composed
of Dr Luis Amado, Portuguese Foreign Minister who recently paid a visit to
South Africa, Javier Solana, EU High Representative for Common Foreign and
Security Policy and Mr Olli Rehn, Commissioner for Enlargement of the European
Commission. Amongst issues on the agenda for this meeting was the EUâAfrica
Strategy which will be adopted at the EUâAfrica Summit in Lisbon, December,
2007. Discussions on Migration, Kosovo, Developments in Africa (Great Lakes,
Cote d'Ivoire, Sudan, Somalia, Burundi, and Zimbabwe also took place. The
Situation in the Middle East, Climate Change and UN Chapter V111 issues were
also discussed. Ministers agreed to hold their next meeting in South Africa
under the Portuguese Presidency. A joint communiqué was agreed upon which is
posted on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website: (http://www.dfa.gov.za).
Bolivian delegation's South Africa visit
South Africa also hosted a delegation of the "Movimiento al Socialismo"
(MAS), the majority party in the Bolivian Assembly, this week. The Bolivian
delegation's visit is in response to the South African Government's offer to
Vice President Garcia Lenera during his visit in April 2007, to assist the
Bolivians with institution-building and the process of drafting their
constitution. It was furthermore agreed that they interact with South African
constitutional specialists from Parliament, senior officials, academics,
captains of industry, civil society and the Constitutional Court.
The purpose of the Bolivian visit was threefold: To strengthen bilateral
relations, to identify areas of future co-operation between the two countries
and to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on the establishment of a
Mechanism for Consultations. The discussions focused on the South African
experience in breaking deadlocks and creating trust in the constitution making
process to the benefit of the people. The Bolivian authorities have indicated
their interest in benefiting from South Africa's experience with regards to the
creation of a successful civil service. The visit must be seen as a part of
work in progress between the two countries.
Working visit by Minister Dlamini Zuma to Beijing to hold discussions with
Chinese counterpart from Saturday, 19 May 2007 to Tuesday, 22 May 2007
Foreign Minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma will hold bilateral political and
economic discussions with her counterpart Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on
Sunday, 20 May 2007. This visit is important in the context of China as an
economic power and Chinese entry onto the African continent. Discussions
between Ministers Dlamini Zuma and Yang come within the context of South
Africa's priority to consolidate political, economic and trade relations with
the Peoples Republic of China with a focus on a developmental agenda. South
Africa's strategic engagement with China is a key foreign policy priority.
China has been identified as a key global actor with whom South Africa seeks to
broaden relations in support of South-South co-operation, another key objective
of South Africa's foreign policy.
Issues on the agenda of discussions between Ministers Dlamini Zuma and
Jiechi are expected to include, among others:
* the status of bilateral political and economic relations between both
countries
* preparations for the Binational Commission scheduled to be held in the second
half of 2007
* celebration of the 10th Anniversary of Diplomatic relations
* a briefing on political developments in Africa including peacekeeping and
conflict resolution
* a briefing on developments in Asia
* security council issues.
South Africa is China's key trade partner in Africa, accounting for nearly
21 percent of the total volume of China-Africa trade. In 2006 South African
exports amounted to nearly R14,02 billion, with imports reaching R46,72
billion. In 2006 China became South Africa's second largest import trading
partner, and sixth largest export partner. One of the focus areas would be to
secure more investment into South Africa. The delegations will also look at how
to implement the decisions and commitments of the Africa-China Forum and the
New Asia âAfrica Strategic Partnership.
State visit by President Thabo Mbeki to Hanoi, Vietnam from Thursday, 24 May
2007 to Friday, 25 May 2007)
South African President Thabo Mbeki, supported by Foreign Minister Dr
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, is scheduled to pay a State Visit to Hanoi, Vietnam,
Thursday, 24 May 2007 to Friday, 25 May 2007, the first since 1994. This state
visit occurs within the context of South Africa's commitment to strengthen
political, trade and economic relations with Vietnam with a view to
consolidating the developmental agenda of the South. Issues on the agenda of
discussions between Presidents Thabo Mbeki and Minh Triet are expected to
include, among others:
* the status of bilateral political and economic relations between both
countries
* the support of Vietnam for AsgiSA and Joint Initiative on Priority Skills
Acquisition (Jipsa) in terms of skills development and the sharing of best
practice
* a briefing on developments in Africa with regard to post-conflict
reconstruction in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Burundi, Sudan, Darfur,
Somalia and Cote d'Ivoire
* developments in the Middle East including the Iranian nuclear conflict, Iraq
and the Middle East Peace process
* a briefing on developments in Asia including Myanmar, East Timor and North
Korea
* the consolidation of South-South co-operation through and within such fora as
the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the New Asia Africa Strategic Partnership
(NAASP) and other multilateral organisations
* global challenges including South Africa's mandate as the Non-Permanent
Member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) including UN Security
Council.
President Mbeki will also participate in the following events:
* South AfricaâVietnam Business Forum
* present an address to the Institute of International Relations and;
* interact with students studying at the University; visit the Temple of
Literature, the Reunification Palace and the War Museum.
It is South Africa's view that there is a large potential for economic
relations and especially for the private sector to take up business
opportunities in Vietnam. There are many long-term trade and investment
opportunities for South African companies in Vietnam.
Visit of United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Tony Blair to South Africa:
Thursday, 31 May 2007 to Friday, 1 June 2007
The UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is expected to pay an official visit to
South Africa from Thursday, 31 May to Friday, 1 June 2007. The visit will be
Prime Minister Blair's last to South Africa before stepping down on Wednesday,
27 June 2007. This visit is also important because it takes place on the eve of
the G8 Summit to be held a week later in Germany. In addition to the official
welcome and extensive discussion with President Mbeki, it is foreseen that
Prime Minister Blair will deliver a farewell speech expected to focus strongly
on Africa.
The government of Prime Minister Blair consistently emphasised the
importance of Africa's development agenda by designating 2005 as the Year of
Africa. Africa's development, therefore, was a primary item on the agenda of
the G8 Summit in Gleneagles and many of the recommendations of the Commission
for Africa were taken up by the Gleneagles Summit, building on the G8 Africa
Action Plan launched at Kananaskis in Canada in 2002. Much of this was
incorporated into an agreed, detailed set of commitments by the G8 to address
the areas of poverty, covering aspects such as peace and security, good
governance, human development and growth.
The British Government views South Africa as a major strategic partner in
Africa and we expect that this relationship will be maintained by Mr Blair's
successor. Prime Minister's visit presents an opportunity to review our
relations and how these can be taken forward.
Questions and answers session:
Question: Has the issue of Zimbabwe's attendance on the EU-Africa meeting in
December been discussed and decided on during Minister Dlamini Zuma's recent
meetings in Brussels?
Answer: I am not sure that it was discussed at the meetings, but assume it
might have been, given it was the issue that held up previous summits. From
SA's point of view is that there are so many important issues and interaction
between Africa and the EU like economics and trade, conflict resolution,
migration and climate change, Kosovo independence that needs to be addressed at
summit level. I don't think the Zimbabwe issue was high on the agenda at these
talks, since the focus was on the need to continue with preparations for a
summit and rather see later how the Zimbabwe issue unfolds. We think that the
long-awaited summit is absolutely essential and the issue of representation
should not stall our concrete preparations and take away from the overall
importance of the summit.
Question: What is South Africa doing to address the worsening trade gap in
China's favour; any specific actions to be taken?
Answer: While trade issues fall under the responsibility of Department of
Trade and Industry (dti), I know that we are trying to look at how we can
involve China in areas of beneficiation. We must identify the areas of
beneficiation, what resources are available, then say what we can put in and
asking what they can put in. At the same time we must look at what we can
export to China.
All the important leaders of China have visited South Africa and they keep
asking what we can sell to them, what products can we supply to them and
stating that they will give it favourable assessment. These assurances we have
had from China and Russia. Our private sector needs to concretely identify
those areas; we as Foreign Affairs and government cannot do that. We, however,
encourage our private sector all the time to come up with concrete proposals to
increase our exports, to bring in more investments, to bring in the skilled
personnel that our country need in line with Jipsa and AsgiSA. Government has
created the environment for better co-ordination and co-operation and it in
incumbent on the private sector to exploit those export opportunities. One must
acknowledge that with regards to Africa they have done excellently in building
relations. We encourage them to do the same with regards to trade with China,
maybe also through trilateral arrangements, including countries of Europe. The
growing SA economy is providing opportunities for greater partnerships.
Question: China has reportedly provided the equivalent of about R250 million
in development assistance to South Africa to be used for skills upgrade. What
is the progress on this?
Answer: Questions on the commitments of the allocation of development
funding, including for Jipsa, needs to be taken up with the Deputy Presidency
and the Treasury, whom are dealing with these matters. I think the key issue is
that there were many commitments made at the China-Africa Summit and that the
idea was that each country would unpack these commitments either through the
structures of Southern African Development Community (SADC) or New Partnership
for Africa's Development (Nepad). I believe we need to spent much more time on
the important agreements from the New Asia-Africa Strategic Partnership and
Tokyo International Conference for African Development (Ticad) with Japan and
concretely unpack these to see whether we are getting maximum mileage.
Question: Could the Deputy Minister comment on the latest re the proposed
Hamas leader's visit to South Africa?
Answer: We cannot fight for democracy and then reject democracy and the vote
of the people. SA's thus officially recognised the Palestinian government lead
by Hamas. After the Mecca Agreement, a government of national unity was
established and we agreed to continue to interact with that government.
President Abass has visited South Africa and it is expected that Prime Minster
Imail Haniyeh from Hamas will accept the invitation to visit South Africa like
other Palestinian ministers and representatives have visited recently.
We don't deal with Fatah and Hamas as a government; we deal with their
government authority at a government-to-government level, while ANC would
interact with them as movements at a party level. While the invitation to Prime
Minister is at an official level that is based on a principle decision as we
would similarly interact with members of the Israeli government. That is
because we are working on a two state solution continuously seeing how we can
assist. SA is now very committed to the Arab Plan of 2002, because we believe
that is the best possibility for a regional solution. The plan is base on
return to the 1967 borders, establish a Palestinian state and normalise
relations economically and politically and security of both states and I think
that is an excellent basis to move forward. We would thus multilaterally and
bilaterally support the Arab Plan as a basis to move forward.
Question: What are the changes for a favourable outcome of the UNSCR vote on
independence for Kosovo?
Answer: This is a fundamental and priority issue to the EU and the US. As I
tried to outline to you, South Africa is awaiting the draft motion as proposed
by the EU and the US, although it is believed that the Russians have some
concerns of the Ahtisaari plan and they have not indicated what these are and
have not provided any alternatives. We have not had detailed feedback on the US
Secretary of State's meeting with Russians and now the EU-Africa plan, but we
are hopeful a common approach would come from these consultations.
South Africa has a good idea of all the positions and has consulted
extensively, including as I have indicated, Minister Dlamini Zuma having met
the President of Kosovo during her European visit a few days ago. As the
Minster will now also consult on the issue in China and we will wait for her
feedback with the hope of a common approach. We will obviously look at what the
Russians' approach will be. There are no indications yet whether the will veto
or not veto the resolution to be put forward. We will thus have to wait for all
these pieces to fall into place. While it is clear there are fundamental
differences between the US and Russia, it is our hope that all the discussions
that are taking place can result in a common approach.
Question : What is the delay in the solution of the situation of the Western
Sahara? What is the African Union view on this?
Answer: The issue has been with the UN since 1964. The initial UN settlement
plan was first approved by both sides and then later rejected by the Moroccans,
then came the Baker initiative and that was rejected again. You have a
difficulty that many powerful forces believe that it is not a decolonisation
issue â despite UN resolutions and international legal rulings therefore it can
have some limited autonomy within the framework of Morocco. But the people of
Western Sahara totally reject that they believe they are a sovereign state,
previously occupied by Spain, then Morocco, despite international rulings
stating they should be an independent state and they want a referendum in line
with the UN resolution to determine what they want. So there is no meeting of
minds of the two sides. In terms of the African Union, 21 countries have
recognised the Polisario Front and we argue for that decolonisation process in
line with the UN Resolution
Question: What are the prospects for a solution in the Middle East if there
is not even agreement on the basic issue of a Palestinian State?
Answer: The issue of a Palestinian State is not debatable, the issue is its
boundaries and we have been arguing that it is in Israel's long-term interest
to accept that and not to try and cut it up into pieces, without giving it the
necessary authority and allow other general aspects of sovereignty. We believe
the Palestinians want a two state solution and we support that. Our arguments
with Israel have been over securing their own security by increasing
settlements, putting up walls, border closures continuing and creating an
untenable situation in occupied territories especially in Gaza. We believe the
situation cannot be solved militarily, but only through genuine negotiations
and that is why we see some hope with the Arabs over the last year or two being
involved more actively in trying to get the Israelis to accept the Arab plan
unconditionally and then come and talk. The current start of discussion between
Egypt, Jordan and Israel is important and this can open the way for a broader
Arab Israeli discussion. I think we are closer to finding a solution then we
have been for many years
Question: Indications are that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
report of next week will be negative in terms of Iran stopping its nuclear
activities. Is there support for a third round of sanctions?
Answer: The issue of Iran is not going anywhere fast and we warned that once
you go to the UN Security Council and set deadlines, things can only escalate.
The escalation of sanctions is as a result of the confrontational approach of
attacks and counter-attacks, with warnings from all sides without explaining
what it will be. We will continue through the IAEA and through our membership
of the UNSC to say that Iran must finalise the two outstanding issues to the
IAEA.
Nobody is challenging a country's right to develop nuclear facilities for
peaceful means, but people are saying because of Iran's past record they cannot
be trusted. We are saying that through the IAEA you should have the safety
mechanisms put in place to ensure that such an energy programme is not misused
for other purposes. We voted for the Resolution last time, and we will now wait
to see what progress if any had been made and on the basis of that it will be
determine how we vote. Although now there is no more voting, but incremental
procedure because if there is no progress within 60 days the next steps fall
into place.
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
18 May 2007
