Russia and China will hold naval exercises next month in the Indian Ocean off the coast of South Africa, Sky News reports.

Russia and China will conduct joint naval exercisesPhoto: Sheng Jiapeng/ColorChinaPhoto/AP/Profimedia

South Africa’s armed forces announced on Thursday that they, along with the navies of Russia and China, will take part in “multinational naval exercises” from February 17 to 27 off South Africa’s east coast, near the cities of Durban and Richards Bay.

South Africa, the continent’s most developed country, has so far refused to join the West in condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The government in Pretoria last year said it had taken a neutral stance on the war in Ukraine and called for dialogue and diplomacy, but these naval exercises scheduled for next month have prompted the country’s main opposition party to accuse the government of de facto siding with Moscow.

The South African government, however, denies siding with either camp and has called for an end to the war in Ukraine.

On the other hand, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov plans to visit South Africa in the coming days and meet with his South African counterpart, Naledi Pandor.

South Africa has long-standing ties to Russia, largely due to the support the Soviet Union gave to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s now-ruling African National Congress (ANC) party in its struggle to topple apartheid.

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