President Sauli Niinistö is visiting South Africa and Namibia this week. Representatives of the Finnish business world are also traveling with Niinistö.
President Sauli Niinistö started a two-day state visit to South Africa today.
Niinistö met the president of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa in the country’s capital, Pretoria. Ramaphosa did not mince his words when he praised the close ties between South Africa and Finland at the presidents’ joint press conference.
According to him, liberation from the apartheid regime would not have been possible without the international support provided by Finland and the other Nordic countries.
– Finland is a valued partner of South Africa, President Ramaphosa described.
In his speech, President Niinistö emphasized how wide-ranging the cooperation between Finland and South Africa is, for example in the fields of business and environmental protection.
According to Niinistö, the presidents also discussed the security situation in Europe and Finland’s NATO membership.
– We have a common understanding that all efforts towards peace are profitable, even if they don’t necessarily succeed, Niinistö commented.
The presidents’ press conference did not go without complaints. President Niinistö was close to falling under a flagpole blown down by the wind. Later, the noise of the plane interrupted the outdoor event for a moment.
Putin’s fate open
asked President Ramaphosa if South Africa plans to arrest the Russian president Vladimir Putinif he decides to participate in the BRICS meeting held in the country in August.
South Africa has good relations with Russia, but the country is also a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In theory, South Africa would have to arrest Putin, as the ICC issued an international arrest warrant for the Russian president in March.
– This issue is currently being considered. When it is decided, we will tell everyone about it, Ramaphosa said, without specifying when the decision would be made.
South Africa has not condemned Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Ramaphosa was asked how he justifies his country’s pro-Russian foreign policy.
Ramaphosa stressed that South Africa accepts Finland’s decision to join the military alliance NATO.
– All conflicts are best resolved through negotiation, President Ramaphosa emphasized.
The trip continues to Namibia
On Wednesday, President Niinistö will give a speech and talk to students at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.
On Thursday, Niinistö’s trip to Africa continues to Namibia. The president is scheduled to meet his official brother Hage G. Geingob in the country’s capital, Windhoek.
On the second day of the state visit to Namibia, Niinistö will meet the country’s prime minister Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhilan and the Speaker of the Parliament Peter Hitjitevi for Katjaviv and participates in a business seminar.