South Africa Defends Planned Military Drills With ‘Friends’ Russia and China

South Africa Defends Planned Military Drills With ‘Friends’ Russia and China
South Africa's Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor shakes hands with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, ahead of their bilateral meeting in Pretoria, South Africa, Jan. 23, 2023. Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters
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South Africa’s foreign minister on Monday deflected criticism of joint military drills planned with Russia and China, saying that hosting such exercises with “friends” was the “natural course of relations.”

Naledi Pandor made her comments during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who was visiting South Africa 11 months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.