DOMINIK HEIL AND MARK PETERS: SA foreign policy has long lost its idealism

There is a Russian proverb sometimes ascribed to Vladimir Lenin that says: tell me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are.         

SA’s international relations are typically taking a back seat in the public discourse within its borders. This is no coincidence. The ANC intentionally makes as little noise about it as possible.

While SA is far removed from many geopolitics hot spots, physical distance has long become irrelevant in a highly interconnected economy.

From the start of taking office the ANC has positioned itself as sole liberator of SA, excluding all other liberation voices in the process, when this had much to do with the end of the Cold War and a complex interplay of foreign policy changes of many international players. A good example is the naval exercises scheduled for Durban on February 17, where SA, Russia and China will spend 10 days on naval games. 

While enduring rolling blackouts, endemic corruption and governmental incompetence on an epic scale, in every aspect of society, it is easy to overlook our relations with the rest of the world as a critical issue that does not have immediate repercussions.

However, we know from research that being a responsible participant in the global community has traditionally been a key pillar and strength in our national reputation worldwide. It used to be key in helping to attract investment, tourists and talent. But no more. That ship has sailed.

SA voting against a resolution calling on Myanmar’s government to cease military attacks on civilians in ethnic minority regions in 2018 was probably when SA citizens should have awoken from their slumbers and neglect of their country’s espoused role on the international stage.

From Desmond Tutu, Elie Wiesel, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and many others we know that staying neutral makes you a supporter of the oppressor. In this sense, SA foreign policy has long lost its innocence. Neutrality is the most morally bankrupt option there is.

The latest spectacle is our relationship with Russia. Old personal relationships forged decades ago take precedence over sticking to values formally espoused by the ANC and enshrined in its Freedom Charter and the constitution. We have thrown in our lot with the oppressor, sacrificing our moral standing again for the benefit of just a few.

International relations & co-operation minister Naledi Pandor is busy breaking global records in being the ultimate political contortionist. It is clear that she knows what would have been the right thing to do, but produces the most astounding verbal manoeuvres to justify the unjustifiable.

We now see more of the same with the visit to SA of Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, who makes a career out of upsetting every sector of the international community. What an awkward time for a visit to our shores, with the Ukraine war almost a year old.

More than a decade ago, SA was invited to join Brics. To be sure, foreign policy is like all politics, not a game that can ever stick to ideals and perfections, and it is far better to find an acceptable compromise than get nothing done at all. Pragmatic solutions are preferable to unattainable ideals.  SA now takes on the chairmanship of Brics amid flourishing relationships with its members, but is it a zero-sum game?  What have we given up to be here?

At the time Brics was formed, Russia still displayed some elements of democracy, China was opening up to the global community, and India and Brazil were not yet in the grip of Trumpist leaders. Russia has now irretrievably exposed its imperial stance with utmost brutality, and China is becoming ever more totalitarian.

To be fair, Brics is probably the club that is most likely to stop Russia going nuclear in the war in Ukraine. Brazil under Lula da Silva and his ideas about playing a constructive role in a multipolar world may offer a contribution to a new world order.

However, it is hard to see Brics as a club of countries that may in one way or another strive for the ideals the ANC has fought for in its struggle for liberation, the Freedom Charter and the SA constitution. This is even less the case with those countries that are on the waiting list to join this already compromised club. Saudi Arabia and Algeria are hardly bastions of democracy.

The strategic logic for developing SA’s foreign policy should have at its starting point the ideals that are in line with our ideals as a fully fledged modern democracy, a commitment to human rights and an equitable and fair economy. Of course, these are ideals to be strived for that will require compromises to make progress, but aligning ourselves with totalitarian regimes ridden with oligarchs and fascist tendencies that attack their neighbours (India and China are even in military conflict with each other) is hardly encouraging.

As the proverb about friends has developed, it is now often articulated as: show me your friends and I will show you your future. SA, look in the mirror and weep.

• Heil and Peters are university lecturers in strategy practices, Heil in the UK and Peters in SA.