Africa: Zelensky Rejects Any Proposal for a 'Frozen Conflict'

Presidency/South Africa
African leaders commemorated the dead at Bucha, Ukraine, where hundreds of civilians were killed by Russian troops early in the war. From left, President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia, President Macky Sall of Senegal, President Azali Assoumani of the Comoros (and current President of the African Union), President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa and Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli of Egypt. They held talks with both President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin of Russia during their mission.
16 June 2023
Daily Maverick (Johannesburg)
analysis By Peter Fabricius

The Ukrainian President and the African Peace Mission appear to differ on the road to peace

President Cyril Ramaphosa, speaking for the African Peace Mission to Ukraine, called for the de-escalation of fighting as the first step on the road to peace. But Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky retorted that complete Russian withdrawal from Ukraine was the only route to ending the war.

These sharply contrasting approaches emerged after Ramaphosa, Senegalese President Macky Sall and Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema met Zelensky in Kyiv on Friday, in a day full of controversy, frustration and some peril to the African leaders.

Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, Comoran president Azali Assoumani and Republic of Congo President Denis Sassou Nguesso pulled out of the mission hours before its departure on Thursday.

In Kyiv on Friday warning sirens wailed and explosions sounded, forcing the African leaders and officials to duck into a hotel to use its bomb shelter during the day, Reuters reported. Strangely, Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya disputed the reports of the sirens and explosions, reportedly telling News24 that the African delegation saw and heard nothing.

"There's obviously some deliberate misinformation being spread here," Magwenya was quoted as saying, seemingly suggesting that Western interests were deliberately trying to discredit Russia in the eyes of the African leaders....

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