Bill Browder and Tony Leon argue that money, not morality, dictates South Africa’s support for Vladimir Putin
The anti-cronyism activist and the South African politician explain why
KING CHARLES III has conferred a signal honour on South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa. He has invited him on a state visit to Britain this month, the first by a foreign leader since the king came to the throne. That is in spite of South Africa’s refusal to condemn Russia’s merciless war in Ukraine. In October the country abstained in a UN vote on a resolution demanding Russia reverse course on its illegal annexations of occupied areas of eastern and southern Ukraine. Just 34 other countries abstained and five voted against the resolution; 143 countries voted in its favour. The youth league of Mr Ramaphosa’s party, the African National Congress (ANC) even sent a delegation to observe the rigged referendums on annexation. It described them as “a beautiful, wonderful process”.
This article appeared in the By Invitation section of the print edition under the headline “Bill Browder and Tony Leon argue that money, not morality, dictates South Africa’s support for Vladimir Putin”
From the November 26th 2022 edition
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