Russian Consulate in Cape Town

🎉🇿🇦 Happy Freedom Day, South Africa! Today, 27 April, South Africa celebrates the 31st anniversary of its first democratic elections — a landmark event that marked the beginning of a new era of freedom, equality and justice. Held in 1994, these historic elections were the first in which citizens of all races could exercise their right to vote, putting an end to decades of apartheid rule. Freedom Day honours the sacrifices and courage of those who fought tirelessly against injustice and discrimination, paving the way for a democratic and inclusive South Africa. The Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Cape Town extends its warmest congratulations to all South Africans on this significant occasion! #FreedomDay#SouthAfrica

🇷🇺🤝🇿🇦 Ambassador-designate of Russia to South Africa Roman Ambarov took part in the event to commemorate the Day of Reconciliation in Vredendal, Western Cape. The celebration was arranged by the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture of South Africa with Minister Gayton McKenzie acting as the program moderator. 🎙 President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered the keynote address pointing out that this Day of Reconciliation’s theme is “Healing historical wounds and forging new futures.” It is an occasion where South Africans remember and celebrate their journey as a country towards nation-building, healing, social justice and forgiveness, he emphasized. We are all bound together by the spirit of Ubuntu. The word “Ubuntu” has its roots in the IsiZulu phrase “umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” – “A person is a person through other people,” “I am because we are” - Cyril Ramaphosa noted. “This day is of great historical significance. It is a reminder that the country went through centuries of divisions and conflicts. But instead of hatred and revenge, South Africans chose reconciliation and nation-building, as Nelson Mandela, the first democratically elected President of South Africa once said. On this day, #Russia sincerely wishes the friendly South African people peace, harmony and unity!” Ambassador-designate Roman Ambarov said on the sidelines of the event. #ReconciliationDay2024#UniteAgainstAllIntolerances#Ambarov#EmbassyofRussia#SouthAfrica#CyrilRamaphosa#GaytonMcKenzie

LESSONS OF HISTORY REPEATED ✍️Article by Ambassador of Russia to South Africa Ilya Rogachev (31 July 2024) READ IN FULL Key points: 🔹 Obsessed with the idea to inflict a military defeat upon Russia and split it into several smaller states with limited sovereignty, the collective West is heading towards a war against Russia, and decisions of the latest NATO summit in Washington D.C. corroborate that. "Europe is preparing for war. The pro-war train has no brakes, and the driver has gone mad” - Hungary’s Premier V.Orban". 🔹There is a very common opinion in Russia that approximately once in a centenary, the West braces up and comes to the Russian soil with a sword, where it gets beaten up and retires with its nose bloodied to remain calm for another 100 years. 🔹The Time of Troubles in Russia (XVII century) was accompanied by foreign military interventions (Poland, Sweden) which endangered the very existence of Russia as a sovereign state. But in 1612 people’s militia ousted the invaders. 🔹The XVIII century saw yet another major clash with Europeans known as the Great Northern War. During Swedish King Charles XII’s Russian campaign, in 1709, the army of invaders was completely decimated by Russian troops under the command of Peter the Great. 🔹In about 100 years, a new attempt to clamp Russia was made as Napoleon Bonaparte of France in 1812 led his ‘Grand Army’ into the ill-fated invasion. 600,000 soldiers of his army came to Russia in June 1812, and in only 6 months their remnants were chased away by Field Marshal Kutuzov’s troops. In 1814, the Russian army entered Paris. 🔹The XX century saw another large-scale invasion of Russia from the West. Our country survived World War I accompanied by inner political turmoil with three revolutions, the Civil War and foreign military interventions involving UK, France, USA etc. ☝️ Only two decades later Nazi Germany attacked the USSR. Hitler intended to conquer the USSR by the end of 1941, but it didn’t turn out the way he expected. On 30 April 1945, as the Red Army was storming Berlin, he committed suicide in the basement of the Reich Chancellery. 👉 Russian historian V.Klyuchevsky once wrote that history does not teach any lessons but punishes one for not learning them. The West should stop rewriting history and start learning it, in order to prevent history from repeating itself every 100 years. #alternativeviewpoint#embassyofrussia#rogachev#russia#southafrica