South Africa is the continent's most industrialized country and has the most diversified economy in Africa. The nation joined the BRIC bloc (Brazil, Russia, India, China) in 2010, after which the organization changed its name to BRICS.

The three-sided naval exercises involving China, Russia, and South Africa, which will take place on February 17-24 near the coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, have "all chances" of taking place again in 2024, says Mzuvukile Maqetuka, South African ambassador to Moscow, in an interview with Sputnik.

"Looking at the track record already now from 2019, it is an ongoing annual event. And I am expecting that all chances are that even in 2024 there will be another exercise," the South African ambassador notes. According to him, South Africa perceives "the reaction of other countries as part of the democratic process" against the backdrop of US criticism of Pretoria's cooperation with Russia. It is important what goal South Africa sets for itself when deciding to participate in the exercises, the ambassador says.

Cooperation between South Africa, Russia, and China also takes place within the BRICS bloc. On January 1, South Africa took over the BRICS chairship from China and will host this year's bloc events. According to the ambassador, his country is choosing between Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, and Pretoria when it comes to which city will host the BRICS summit.

All the partner countries' presidents will be invited to the event, which is the first to be held offline since 2019, Maqetuka says. "All presidents will be invited, it is standard practice ... It will depend on President Putin and the Kremlin [whether he will participate], but an invitation would definitely be sent, it is expected," he says.

He notes that BRICS expansion will be South Africa's priority as the 2023 chair. According to the ambassador, his country is planning to address the issue of developing mechanisms which will allow the inclusion of new members. Maqetuka underlines that decisions concerning the expansion of the group will be made by consensus, just like every other BRICS decision. He says that some 13 countries are expected to join the bloc, with Egypt and Algeria being the ones from Africa. Only six countries have applied officially, he notes.

According to Maqetuka, South Africa does not make unilateral decisions and always consults with its neighbors in the region. Therefore, even in BRICS, the country's activities will be dedicated to sustainable growth and development, as well as interaction on international platforms, he adds, highlighting the introduction of African countries as permanent UN Security Council members and the introduction of the African Union to the G20 as South Africa's priorities.

UN Security Council reform has been supported by numerous countries, including Russia and the US, although there is still no agreement on how it should be implemented. This year will be marked by a major event within the framework of cooperation between South Africa and Russia – the second Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum, which will take place from July 26 to 29 in Saint Petersburg. The meeting is a follow-up to the first one, which was held in 2019 in Sochi.

The South African ambassador says that his country's President Cyril Ramaphosa has accepted the invitation to the 2023 summit. Maqetuka also notes that along with other African ambassadors, he participated in a briefing led by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov concerning the summit, and is planning to take part in the forthcoming preparatory events. Maqetuka also highlights several fields of potential development of cooperation between his country and Russia.

Breonna Taylor

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