Russian Consulate in Cape Town

🎙Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview for No Statute of Limitations project (Moscow, June 1, 2024) Key talking points: • Unfortunately, we are witnessing the attempts to “realise” history, to rewrite it, and to equate those who defeated Nazism to the Nazi hordes which fact is particularly salient in the case of Ukraine. That is why we find important the efforts to create awareness carried out by public organisations, the Foreign Ministry and other agencies, as well as the Ministry of Culture, the Russian Historical Society, the Russian Military History Society, and our scouts who every year discover burial sites of the victims who died by the hand of Hitler’s criminals in different parts of our country and often beyond its borders. • The revival of Nazism is clear as day witnessed today in Ukraine. • Sadly, after the special military operation against Nazism started in Ukraine, European countries - Germany, Japan and Italy - that abstained during the General Assembly voting on the resolution against the glorification of Nazism started voting against it. • In July 2008, the Germans decided to make lump-sum payments to siege survivors of Jewish descent only. We contacted them and said that justice must prevail. All siege survivors had similar amounts of suffering to endure. They all experienced sub-zero chills and died. It was a harrowing part of the Great Patriotic War, or World War II. We were told that Holocaust victims can and should be compensated according to the law, while other people are not victims of the Holocaust. Clearly, this came across as a cynicalremark. • If we look at the current situation in NATO and EU, the Baltic nations, the Poles and the Czechs are part of the most aggressive group in the European organisations. These countries initiate the most Russophobic approaches and actions of the EU and NATO. Read in full

🇷🇺 Representatives of the diplomatic corps checked Western trophy weapons in an exhibition in Moscow. And that's what they think of it👇 "It was very surprising, for this all equipment that is used against Russia from many, many different countries, from many western countries that are helping Ukraine in front of Russia," Zoheir Sabaghpour, an official from Iran, told Sputnik Africa during a tour of the Poklonnaya Hill memorial complex in Moscow. For his part, Ayeh Nana Asafo-Adjei, from Ghana, said the exhibition proved "Russia's advancement" in the field of defense and "the advanced technologies they have." "I think that, undoubtedly, Russia leads in civil defense. That's why Ghana, for all these while, has been in partnership with them, coming here frequently," Asafo-Adjei told Sputnik Africa. On Friday, on the territory of the memorial complex Poklonnaya Hill, there was a tour for representatives of the diplomatic corps in Moscow to the exhibition of trophy Western weapons and equipment captured on the battlefield of the Ukrainian conflict. Subscribe to @sputnik_africa 🔸TikTok | Sputnik Africa | Boost us on Telegram🔸

🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s interview with Rossiya Segodnya (May 30, 2024) Key talking points: 💬 The deployment of US ground-launched intermediate and shorter-range missiles (IRBMs) in these regions [Europe and Asia Pacific] poses significant security challenges for Russia. <...> We will not hesitate to respond if the Americans move forward with their plans to deploy their ground-launched IRBMs. 🇷🇺🇨🇳 We have established a high level of mutual trust with China, which serves as a foundation for our military cooperation. By working together, Russia and China seek to reinforce international security in keeping with international norms. • We appreciate Beijing’s constructive approach to the Ukraine crisis. Our Chinese friends understand its root causes and the essence of the current developments. • The current ruling party in Kiev is the party of war, and their stated goal is to defeat Russia on the battlefield. It is difficult to imagine any peace talks taking place in that situation. ☝️ We said on numerous occasions, including at the highest level, that Russia remains open to negotiations. However, it should be clear to everyone that we will only discuss peace, not a ceasefire. • There is no denying that the OSCE is in a deep crisis. It has been caused by the fact that the West has trampled on the principles the organisation was built on. A total “Ukrainisation” of its agenda has practically brought to naught its activities in the traditional fields. • Supplying the Kiev regime with increasingly destructive types of weapons shows that the West is not interested in ending the conflict. The F-16 American fighters will not change the situation on the line of contact. ❌ From our experience with the Americans, it is perfectly clear that US statements are not to be trusted. <...> The Americans continue to make declarations about their commitment to a just solution to the Palestine problem, while at the same time generously adding fuel to the armed confrontation. Read in full

🌍 "A US dollar hegemony is a pandemic to Africa, which needs to be immunized in terms of some vaccinations": African expert "There is no convincing theory of economics other than to say that the US dollar hegemony is no longer sustainable in the 21st century," Dr. Alexander Rusero, Head of the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy at Africa University in Zimbabwe, told Sputnik Africa. He argued that "a US dollar hegemony is a pandemic to Africa, which needs to be immunized in terms of some vaccinations of some sort with respect to progressive policies, bilateral and multilateral relations that will bring the much needed win-win scenario between Africa and any other progressive partner or player." The international relations expert also condemned the IMF and the World Bank, both institutions established under the Bretton Woods system, for imposing harmful policies on Africa. "They have tried all experiments on Africa, which came with the difficulties, paradoxes and complexities that we are still grappling with," he said. 🙋‍♀️ Dr. Rusero proposed a solution: a shift towards BRICS. According to him, progressive Africans should seriously consider joining the bloc and solidify the idea of a BRICS currency. 💎 The expert added that African nations could also use their vast natural resources to create currencies that reflect their true economic potential. He also emphasized the need for greater African unity, criticizing the continent's internal divisions. "Africa can take care of the whole world as it has been doing all along," he stated. "We need Africa to revitalize its agency and to take itself seriously in international relations and in the process before anyone can start to take us seriously." Subscribe to @sputnik_africa 🔸TikTok | Sputnik Africa | Boost us on Telegram🔸

⚡️Briefing by Chief of Nuclear, Chemical and Biological Protection Troops of the Armed Forces of Russia Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov on military-chemical activities of the US and Ukraine (May 28, 2024) Key talking points: 💬 Not only has Washington not renounced the use of chemical weapons, but it has also strengthened the possibility of their use at a legislative level. <...> The US thus has a legal framework that regulates a wide range of scenarios of the use of chemical weapons by the Armed Forces. • The Pentagon reportedly continues to develop new and modernise existing non-lethal chemical munitions and other systems for the use of chemical weapons, such as 120-mm mines, 155-mm artillery shells, and 120-mm tank rounds. • With Washington's acquiescence, the use of toxic substances and riot control agents by Ukrainian militants during the special military operation hasbecome systematic. • Numerous cases of use of chloropicrin (on Schedule 3 CWC List) irritant by the Ukrainian side, often in mixture with chloroacetophenone, have been recorded. Similar incidents have been recorded near Donetsk, Bogdanovka, Gorlovka, Kremennaya, Artyomovsk. • Plans for the large-scale use of toxic substances are reflected in Ukraine's requests for the supply of antidotes, gas masks, and other personal protective equipment in quantities that are clearly excessive. • With regard to the OPCW's double standard policy, I would like to recall the confirmed use of toxic substances (like Tabun, BZ, prussic acid) and non-lethal chemicals (CS, chloropicrin, chloroacetophenone) by the Kiev regime. All the necessary evidence has been submitted to the OPCW Technical Secretariat, but we have not received a meaningful response. <...> ❗️ This once again convinces us that the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, in its current form, is controlled by the West and used by it to settle political accounts. Read in full

According to media reports, during his speech at the Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, US President Joe Biden stated that, during World War II, it were the American soldiers who liberated Europe and “literally saved the world.” The US leader has not uttered a word regarding the role of the Soviet Union and other countries in achieving Victory over Nazism. Indeed, time has not been kind to the US presidents. The generation of leaders who fought in World War II, including Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, has passed away. They would have never allowed the Soviet Union’s decisive contribution to defeating the Third Reich to be ignored. They still remembered Franklin D. Roosevelt’s words of admiration and gratitude regarding the Red Army and its efforts. Half of the contemporary US presidents suffer from historical revisionism syndrome. Only four years ago, the leaders of Russia and the US, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, issued a Joint Statement on the 75th Anniversary of the link-up on the Elbe. At that time, they emphasised that this history-making event was the culmination of tremendous efforts of many nations who had united in line with the Declaration of the United Nations of 1942. This joint struggle required the sacrifice of millions of soldiers, sailors and civilians on numerous theatres of war. The current US President is obviously unable to repeat the words of his predecessor, who said that we pay tribute to the valour and courage of all those who fought together to defeat Nazism, and that their heroic feat will never be forgotten. It would be ironic to expect gratitude from those funding the neo-Nazi regime in Kiev and supplying it with weapons towards the peoples of the Soviet Union for Victory over Nazism. The current-day policy of US exceptionalism is a betrayal of America’s own antifascist past. In these conditions, Russia demonstrates its commitment to preserving the memory of the Allied Victory (the UN often used this term at that time) in 1945. On May 9, the entire world witnessed this during the Russian President’s speech at the Victory Parade on the Red Square: “Russia has never belittled the significance of the Second Front or that of Allied assistance. We honour the valour of all members of the Anti-Hitler Coalition, the Resistance Movement, the underground movement and guerrillas, as well as the courage displayed by the peoples of China fighting for their independence against militarist Japan's aggression. We will forever remember and we will never forget our joint struggle and the inspiring traditions of alliance.”

🇿🇦🗳🇷🇺Observation mission from Russia arrives in South Africa ahead of elections “It [the commission] includes representatives of the Civic Chamber of Russia. We are accredited by the independent election commission of South Africa as international observers and have received a mandate to monitor the voting process. There is a lot of work to be done,” a member of the delegation, chairman of the Commission on Protecting State Sovereignty of the Russia's Civic Chamber Vladimir Rogov told Sputnik. According to him, a meeting has already taken place between the Russian delegation and the representative of the President of South Africa in BRICS. Subscribe to @sputnik_africa 🔸TikTok | Sputnik Africa | Boost us on Telegram🔸

🌍 Today (May 25) is African Liberation Day or #AfricaDay. On this day in 1963, the first conference of African governments took place in Addis Ababa, paving the way to the establishment of the Organisation of African Unity, which later evolved into the African Union. This was how the first stage in the decolonisation process on the African continent reached its culminating point. 👉Follow this link to read our feature article on Africa Day. Long before the Europeans arrived in Africa, it was home to developed, self-sufficient and sustainable economies with their own homegrown governance models, as well as production and reproduction paradigms which were in sync with the continent’s environmental and climate imperatives. It was during the Age of Discovery that Europeans started intensively exploiting Africa’s natural and human resources for enriching their countries, with the Portuguese and Spanish becoming the first nations to establish trade routes along Africa’s western coast. ⛓⛓ European powers relied on slave trade as their main method for generating maximum returns. The discovery of the New World brought about a boom for this kind of trade since European colonisers needed free labour to gain a foothold in the Americas. It started by sending slaves from Europe, but by the mid-16th century there were already slave ships heading to the New World across the Atlantic directly from Africa. Apart from slave trade, Europeans exploited Africa’s rich natural resources. They exported its gold, ivory and other valuable goods. In the 19th and 20th centuries, this policy of exploiting African resources by the European colonial powers, i.e., Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Belgium, morphed into an all-out effort to subjugate the continent. This brought about and reinforced national liberation movements across the continent and resulted in African counties achieving their independence in the 1960s. 📃 The Soviet Union played a key role in pressuring the UN General Assembly to pass the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples proclaiming the need to end colonialism and discrimination in all its forms. Our country has played an essential role in proactively assisting African nations in their struggle for independence and played an important role in helping establish these young nations. In fact, the USSR helped build 37 African economies by signing bilateral economic and technical cooperation agreements with them. Soviet military advisors and military experts worked in Angola, Ethiopia, Egypt, Mozambique and several other African countries at different times. 🇷🇺🤝🌍 Today, efforts to develop multi-pronged, comprehensive cooperation with African states constitutes a major foreign policy priority for Russia. Held in July 2023 in St Petersburg, the Second Russia-Africa Summit served as anew and major impetus for developing our relations with countries across this region in all their aspects. ❌ Not only are Western powers continuing to exploit the African nations by siphoning off their resources and helping their corporations earn hefty profits, but also seek to defend their own unsightly record there. In their effort to falsify history they have gone beyond their attempts to rewrite the fundamental causes, course and outcomes of World War II and went on to engage in a cynical, albeit tacit, campaign to sweep the colonial-era horrors under the carpet. The West is trying to pretend that it has nothing to do with the suffering many generations of Africans have had to endure, including racism, slave trade and punitive operations. ☝️But Africa remembers it all. #AfricaDay

The Thin Red Line: From Unthinkable to Unavoidable ✍🏻Article by Ambassador of Russia to South Africa Ilya Rogachev (23 May 2024) READ IN FULL ➡ Key points: 🔹 Ukraine keeps losing the ground, yet given how much Washington and Brussels had politically, financially and militarily over-committed themselves to the conflict, they are more than reluctant to let Kiev lose. Insomuch as to consider putting their own troops on ground in Ukraine. 🔸 What is happening in Western politics and mass media resembles attempts to ‘shift the Overton window’ with regard to the idea of the West’s yet another war against Russia. The Overton’s concept is sometimes regarded as a theory of manipulation of public opinion which can even go so far as to turn the given society away from its traditions, culture and common sense-based values to opposite ones through propaganda. ☝🏻In terms of the present-day relationship between Russia and the West this technology may be applied to brainwash people into going to war against Russia by gradually increasing the idea’s degree of public acceptance: ‘unthinkable,’ ‘radical,’ ‘acceptable,’ ‘sensible,’ ‘popular’ and ‘policy.’ ⚔ People remember President Macron’s statements about sending French troops to Ukraine, but the efforts to lift the restrictions on discussion of the topic started back in 2022-2023, when Western leaders began repeating that boots of their soldiers will never ever touch the ground in Ukraine. It was the first step to ‘get people used’ to the idea, and thus turn it from ‘unthinkable’ into ‘radical.’ Right now the masterminds of Western propaganda are trying to make the ‘radical’ idea of an all-Western war against Russia ‘acceptable.’

✍️ Russia's President Vladimir Putinsent a message of greetings to heads of state and government of African countries on Africa Day ✉️ Please, accept my cordial greetings on #AfricaDay – a holiday symbolising the victory of African countries over colonialism and their striving for freedom, peace and prosperity. African countries have scored universally recognised successes in the socioeconomic area and are playing an increasingly important role in resolving current international issues. The African Union and a number of sub-regional structures are expanding constructive cooperation, creating mechanisms for collective response to local conflicts and crises and consistently promoting integration processes. Russia is paying special attention to strengthening friendly relations with African partners. We are united by our commitment to building a fair multipolar world order based on true equality and the international rule of law, and free from any form of discrimination, dictate and sanctions pressure.” The Second Russia-Africa Summit held in St Petersburg last year certainly created conditions for enhancing productive and mutually beneficial cooperation in most diverse areas. I am confident that consistent implementation of the plans and agreements reached at that important multilateral meeting meets our common interests and contributes to ensuring stability and security in Africa.

🎙 Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s statement at a reception on the occasion of Africa Day (Moscow, May 23, 2024) 💬Sergey Lavrov:#AfricaDay — a holiday which epitomises the unwavering will of the African peoples and their struggle in pursuit of freedom and human dignity. This year, the holiday coincides with the 20th Anniversary of the African Union’s Peace and Security Council which is one of the main bodies of this pan-African organisation that plays a significant role in shaping the modern African security architecture and the political and socioeconomic integration of the continent’s countries, and ensuring its proper place within the international economic relations system. 🌍 We in Russia are pleased to note that Africa continues to gain political weight and to establish itself as a crucial pillar of the emerging multipolar order. Dynamic integration processes, rapidly growing markets, and business activity make it possible for the African states to play an increasingly meaningful role in international affairs and speak as one. <…> Fighting the newly emerged colonial and neo-colonial practices has come to the forefront today. The Western methods have changed, but the thrust of its policy towards African countries has remained unchanged and is to bring them to its heel and to live at the expense of other countries using more sophisticated forms of exploitation as part of the rules-based order. We remain willing, notwithstanding current circumstances, to support the African countries in their efforts to advance their sovereignty, to address pressing socioeconomic challenges, and to assert Africa’s rightful place as an equal partner in the modern world, including in the efforts to reform the UN Security Council. <…> The potential for Russian-African cooperation across all areas is truly vast. We will continue to work together to bring our relations to the level of a truly strategic partnership. 📄Read in full #RussiaAfrica

❗️ Vladimir Putin has invited the King of Bahrain to attend the BRICS summit in Kazan. The invitation has been accepted, said Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov. Subscribe to @sputnik_africa 🔸TikTok | Sputnik Africa | Boost us on Telegram🔸