A bipartisan group of lawmakers has urged the Biden administration to punish South Africa for its alleged decision to provide arms to Russia for use in Ukraine.
The lawmakers said in a letter sent last week, per the New York Times, that the administration should move the annual forum for the African Growth and Opportunity Act, or AGOA, to another country due to South Africa's support for Russia’s war.
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“We are seriously concerned that hosting the 2023 AGOA Forum in South Africa would serve as an implicit endorsement of South Africa’s damaging support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and possible violation of U.S. sanctions law,” they wrote.
The letter, dated June 9, was signed by Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on State; Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; and Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. It was addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, national security adviser Jake Sullivan, and Ambassador Katherine Tai of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
South Africa provided a shipment of weapons to Russia in December, Ambassador Reuben Brigety, the lead U.S. envoy in South Africa, told reporters in May. The transfer supposedly occurred between Dec. 6 and Dec. 8, when a sanctioned Russian cargo ship docked at Simon’s Town Naval Base, near Cape Town.
“The arming of the Russians is extremely serious, and we do not consider this issue to be resolved,” Brigety added. “This is an issue of the political orientation of the ruling party of the country and what it means, as the party that is responsible for deploying senior government officials into the government of South Africa."
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The United States and its Western allies have gone to far lengths to discourage countries from aiding Russia in the war. Iran and North Korea have disregarded those warnings and provided Moscow with weapons, while Chinese companies have provided dual-use items, though U.S. officials have said Beijing has thus far not provided lethal aid.
A Chinese technology component was found in an Iranian unmanned aerial vehicle that was deployed in Ukraine by Russian forces. Investigators found marking indicating the Chinese piece was manufactured in January, while the drone it was in was shot down in April, which “indicates an extremely rapid turnover between component production and procurement, assembly of the UAV, and its eventual deployment in Ukraine," according to a Monday report from Conflict Armament Research, an organization based in the United Kingdom.