SOUTH Africa will not take sides in a contest between global powers, President Cyril Ramaphosa has said as he hit out at critics accusing his country of siding with Russia in the war with Ukraine. Ramaphosa was writing in his weekly letter, days after the United States envoy in South Africa accused the African National Congress-led government of arming Russia. “Since the advent of democracy nearly 30 years, South Africa has pursued an independent foreign policy.” Ramaphosa said. He noted…

AN economist has dismissed claims China’s increased maize imports from South Africa are a “political posture” by the Asian powerhouse to replace the United States. Some media have made the claims after China bought 108 104 tonnes of maize from South Africa in the last week of March and the first fewweeks of April 2023. State-owned trader, COFCO, brought the grain. Some Chinese buyers reportedly cancelled 562 800 tonnes of US corn orders in the last week of April. Wandile…

THE South African Communist Party (SACP) has called on the government to expel the United States (US) ambassador, Reuben Brigety II, following his claims the host country sent arms to Russia, in its conflict with Ukraine. At a press briefing he addressed on Thursday, Brigety accused South Africa of “arming Russia with a vessel that landed in Simons Town.” The envoy further asserted that this was “fundamentally unacceptable.” “The conduct of the United States ambassador to South Africa, leaves much…

RESEARCHERS have discovered a series of attacks by a new malware, supposedly developed by the infamous OilRig Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) group active in the Middle East and Turkiye for over a decade. The group is known for targeting high-profile government entities across Africa, the Middle East and Turkiye for cyber espionage purposes. Kaspersky Researchers have announced the discovery. The OilRig APT commonly uses social engineering tactics, exploits software and technical vulnerabilities within their victims. However, Kaspersky experts noticed the…

THE coronavirus (COVID-19) has been declared over as a global health emergency. However it will be folly for any individual or country to let down their guard as the declaration does not mean the virus has ended. Last Friday, the international community heaved a collective sigh of relief as Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), proclaimed an end to the public health emergency of international concern on COVID-19. This followed the recommendation of the Emergency…

SOUTH Africa commemorated 29 years of self-rule in the wake of an incessant energy crisis, millions beset by unemployment, crime and the scourge of gender-based violence. President Cyril Ramaphosa conceded to the challenges as he addressed the nation from the town of Matlosana in the North West province on Thursday. April 27 is marked yearly as Freedom Day. “Freedom cannot be meaningful when South African homes and businesses are without electricity for several hours in the day,” Ramaphosa said.Millions perceptibly…

SOUTH Africa has exceeded its investment targets by 25 percent, after its investment drive secured pledges of over R1,5 trillion (US$81, 976 billion). This exceeds the target of R1,2 trillion the government set in 2018. The latest pledges were made last week at the fifth South Africa Investment Conference, which was held in Johannesburg. President Cyrila Ramaphosa believes the pledges provided a huge boost tothe country’s digital economy. “In addition to significant investment commitments in data and telecommunications infrastructure, there…

SOUTH Africa’s agricultural export expansion drive to Asia should not be at the expense of existing markets, mostly the Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional bloc. In addition, the country must ensure cordial trade relations with fellow African nations in this drive to broaden its export base. This is the view of locally-based agricultural expert, Wandile Sihlobo. Sihlobo, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz), maintained South Africa should expand its markets to Bangladesh, China, India, Saudi Arabia and…

BARELY three weeks after the World Internet Conference (WIC) announced various Chinese companies were into research aimed at transiting from fifth generation technology (5G) to 6G, global citizens reacted differently. The highly rated 6G is widely viewed as a game-changer towards advancing extended reality (AER), artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, digital twinning, internet of things (IoT), Optimize Communications, Interoperability and Sustainability. The 6G network is therefore defined as a cellular network that operates in untapped radio frequencies and uses cognitive…

THREATS of sanctions against South Africa by the United States (US) are a typical example of so-called big countries bullying smaller countries in the worsening geopolitical conflicts. It also presents a litmus test to South Africa’s foreign policy stance of neutrality as the country gets caught up in the fallout among the world’s most influential nations. The threat of sanctions by America follows the Iran warships docking at the Cape Town port last Friday. Iran is a long-running rival of…