President Cyril Ramaphosa has promised to “straighten out the wrinkles” in South Africa’s relations with Rwanda to end years of frosty relations between Pretoria and Kigali.
Addressing journalists on Sunday after a one-day working visit to Rwanda, Ramaphosa said he and President Paul Kagame held a three-hour meeting on Saturday night to discuss the differences between the two countries.
Acknowledging that relations between the countries have “over the years faced some challenges,” the South African leader said the main objective of his meeting with Kagame was to “refashion our relationship.”
“And we are rekindling and rebuilding that relationship. Those wrinkles will be straightened out,” Ramaphosa said.
The meeting between the two leaders took place ahead of Sunday’s commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the 1994 genocide against Rwanda’s Tutsi people.
Several factors are behind the frosty relations between South Africa and Rwanda, chief among them Pretoria’s decision to deploy forces as part of a southern African regional forces that is keeping peace in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
According to reports, Rwanda viewed South Africa’s move as a challenge against the Kigali authorities who are seen as pro the M23 rebels operating in eastern DRC.
Another sore point in the bilateral relations is the insistence by South Africa for Rwandans to apply for visas before travelling to South Africa. On the other hand, South Africans receive a free 30-day visa upon arrival in Kigali.
JN/APA
Source link : https://apanews.net/south-africa-rwanda-agree-to-mend-frosty-ties-ramaphosa/
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Publish date : 2024-04-08 03:00:00
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