Earlier this week the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa, Naledi Pandor, announced that President Cyril Ramaphosa would meet with the President of the United States of America, Joe Biden.
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The President is in America today and will have a meeting with Biden at the White House which is set to discuss the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Ramaphosa has been one of the few African leaders that have remained neutral between the two countries. However, Biden is set to put much pressure on Ramaphosa to take a much tougher decision toward Russia.
Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, and now Western decision-makers and Russia have now solicited support from Africa.
This will be the very first face-to-face sitting between the South African President and US President inside the White House since 2014.
Furthermore, parts of the agenda for the visit are to discuss the impact of the same issues the two countries are struggling with globally like health, infrastructure, food security, climate change, trade and investments.
Minister Naledi Pandor said there has been a huge increase in two-way trade between the two countries, adding that the US is South Africa’s third largest trading partner after China and the European Union, with more than 600 American companies operating locally. In 2021, the US ranked as the second largest destination for South Africa’s exports globally.
To add, the visit to the United States is to strengthen two-sided relations and deepen the pursuit of common goals through the United Nations, which remains the main sector that the international community is able to face challenges of the world.
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Picture: Cape Town Etc {Gallery}