South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Tuesday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to host a delegation led by the heads of state of Zambia, Senegal, Congo-Brazzaville, Uganda, Egypt, and South Africa.
The announcement comes against a backdrop of tense relations between Pretoria and Washington, following accusations by the US ambassador that South Africa had supplied arms to Russia.
In this context, Ramaphosa said he was able to talk with Presidents Putin and Zelensky and they agreed to host this mission of African heads of state. Indeed, the South African president is trying to radically change the situation with this project, which has been under discussion for weeks and is being overseen by the Brazzaville Foundation.
The modalities for receiving this peace mission are still under discussion, to decide who will receive the mission first.
The choice of the six countries was made to represent the different views of the continent on the conflict, according to the Brazzaville Foundation. Indeed, South Africa and Uganda have always defended Russia, while Zambia and Egypt have voted for the retreat of Russian troops at the UN.
It should be recalled that Cyril Ramaphosa has always called for dialogue and negotiation to find a solution for peace, which justifies his involvement in this project.
According to media reports, Vladimir Putin has proposed that this mission take place on the sidelines of the Russia-Africa summit at the end of July, while the six presidents want it to take place before.