South Africa's leader hails last week's trip as 'historic' but what difference did it really make?
By Mayeni JonesSouth African President Cyril Ramaphosa has hailed as "historic" last week's trip of African leaders to Ukraine and Russia, describing it as "the first time African leaders have embarked on a peace mission beyond" the continent.
There had been hopes that the trip, which was announced last month and led by Mr Ramaphosa, would work towards ending the war, which has badly affected living standards in Africa. Both Russia and Ukraine agreed to continue engagement, South Africa said, but on Saturday Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared to dismiss large chunks of the plan. Ukraine also appeared lukewarm.
President Putin has been threatening to not renew a deal to let Ukrainian grain ships headed for Africa pass through Russian-controlled ports on the Black Sea. Ukraine's leader argued that condemning Moscow was needed to send a clear message to the Russian people that their isolation on the international stage was a result of their president's invasion of Ukraine.
The key aim of the trip was to help strengthen the case for a negotiated diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine, and in that respect, it has not been a success.
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