South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola has reaffirmed the country's commitment to diplomacy, emphasizing that it will remain firm on its principled positions.
JOHANNESBURG, April 1 (Xinhua) -- South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola has reaffirmed the country's commitment to diplomacy, emphasizing that it will remain firm on its principled positions.
South Africa will not engage in "trading insults" with any country, the minister told the opening of the inaugural Annual Aziz Pahad Peace, Security, and Human Rights Dialogue on Monday in Pretoria, the country's administrative capital.
"We're practicing diplomacy. We're not in the business of trading insults with anyone in the world. We will remain firm on our principled positions. We will continue to pursue our national interest in line with diplomatic decorum," Lamola said. "If we disagree with any country, it should not be on the basis of insults but the substance of the matter."
He said that South Africa values its "mutually beneficial trade relations" with the United States, and the government remains committed to extending a "hand to bridge our recently challenging relationship with the U.S."
While Pretoria is open to mending its strained ties with Washington, it remains firm on its policies, including taking the Israeli government to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2023 over alleged genocide in the Gaza Strip, he said.
Addressing international relations matters at the African National Congress media briefing on Sunday, Lamola said South Africa is not prepared to withdraw its case at The Hague.
"This is a matter that we will not withdraw from the court, which we have already put," he said. "This is a matter that we will not compromise."
"There are issues of progressive internationalism that we cannot compromise on, including the issue of the ICJ. This is an issue of international law, which has to be respected by everyone," Lamola said.
Speaking at the Monday dialogue, Lamola also asserted that South Africa would continue to pursue its redress policies, including the Expropriation Act, despite its role in recent tensions with Washington.
He said these policies were enshrined in the country's constitution. "The foundational elements of redress are powerfully articulated in the preamble of the Constitution. As a sovereign state, we will continue to pursue the transformative objective as recently outlined in the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act, the National Health Insurance Act, and the Expropriation Act." ■
