Court has no say over nuclear treaty with Russia, says state
'What makes the Russian agreement so special? Nuclear technology is something you cannot get off of the shelves of the supermarket'
Court is the wrong place to argue about the government’s alleged R1-trillion nuclear deal with Russia‚ government lawyers argued on Thursday. “An international treaty shouldn’t be adjudicated by a domestic court‚” Marius Oosthuizen told Judge Lee Bozalek in the High Court in Cape Town. “The court will see this is nothing but two sovereign states going into an agreement.” Earthlife Africa and the Southern African Faith Communities’ Environment Institute have gone to court in an attempt to have the agreement between South Africa and Russia declared unconstitutional because it was not approved by parliament. Thursday was the second day of arguments‚ which are due to conclude on Friday Oosthuizen‚ appearing on behalf of President Jacob Zuma‚ Speaker Baleka Mbete‚ the National Electricity Regulator of South Africa and Eskom‚ said: “As far as foreign relations are concerned‚ the proper route is political accountability. “The Russian treaty is in any event not a procurement contract. (It) ...
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