South African President: The US Accuses "Unreal"
According to a report on the website of The Wall Street Journal on September 4th, South African President Ramaphosa stated on September 3rd that the official investigation has found no evidence to support US officials' allegations of South Africa supplying weapons to Russia.
According to reports, in May this year, US Ambassador to South Africa Ruben Brigitte told the media that the US government was "certain" that a Russian cargo ship docked at a naval base in Cape Town in December last year was loaded with weapons and ammunition. He also said, "The act of providing weapons to Russians is extremely serious."
His accusations have sparked anger among the South African government. The South African Ministry of Foreign Affairs subsequently summoned Brigitte and expressed dissatisfaction with him. South African President Ramaphosa did not deny the allegations at the time and established an investigative committee led by a retired judge.
According to Reuters on the 3rd, in a national speech on the 3rd, Ramaphosa said, "The investigation committee believes that there is no evidence to support the claim that this ship heading to Russia carried weapons from South Africa." "The South African government has not issued a weapons export license or exported weapons."
▲ Ramaphosa
He stated that the ship was docked at that base to transport equipment ordered by South African arms production companies for the South African Armed Forces in 2018.
Ramaphosa said he cannot disclose the details of these equipment as it could affect important military operations in South Africa and endanger the lives of South African soldiers.
He said, "All accusations about providing weapons to Russia have been proven to be false, and those who made the accusations cannot provide any evidence to support this claim."
The spokesperson of the US Embassy in South Africa did not comment on Ramaphosa's statement on the 3rd.