No proof South Africa provided Russia with weapons – inquiry

President Cyril Ramaphosa has said that an investigation has concluded there is no proof that South Africa gave weapons to Russia.

The group disagreed with the statements made by the US ambassador to South Africa that a Russian ship was filled with weapons and ammunition in Cape Town in December of last year.

The claims caused people to doubt if the country was really staying neutral in the war with Ukraine.

Mr Ramaphosa said that it had hurt the country’s money and how people view them.

“The group determined that there was no proof to back up the assertion that the ship carried weapons from South Africa to Russia,” the president explained in a speech to the country on Sunday, broadcasted on television.

No permission was given to send weapons out of the country, and no weapons were sent out.

A representative from the US embassy in Pretoria said that the US understood that South Africa took the claims seriously, but they choose not to say anything about what was in the report.

The investigation discovered that the Russian cargo ship brought weapons from Russia to South Africa, which were ordered in 2018.

Ambassador Reuben Brigety talked about a boat called Lady R that arrived at the Simon’s Town naval base on December 6th to 8th, 2022.

In May, during a press conference in Pretoria, he said that he was sure that weapons and ammunition were put on the ship as it sailed back to Russia.

The next day, South Africa’s foreign ministry said Mr. Brigety had said sorry without holding anything back for the claims.

After the meeting, Mr Brigety expressed his thanks on social media for the chance to. Fix any misunderstandings caused by my public statements.

Mr Ramaphosa instructed a impartial investigation led by a judge, after Mr. Brigety made some remarks.

Mr Ramaphosa stated that none of the people who made these accusations were able to provide any proof to support the claims made against our country. This statement was made after the conclusion of the investigation.

The president will only share a brief summary of the report for safety reasons.

The investigation went to the navy base and talked to about 50 people and looked at over 100 documents, Mr.

South Africa has tried to be friends with Russia since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The US and other Western countries have criticized them for this.

This country is one of the few that didn’t vote in favor or against in several UN votes about the conflict. They chose not to openly criticize Russia regarding this issue.

The US has been worried before about Russia and South Africa doing naval exercises together.