Address by President Cyril Ramaphosa during the BRICS Summit Outreach and BRICS Plus, on the occasion of the 16th BRICS Heads of State Summit in Kazan, Russia

Your Excellency, President Vladimir Putin,
Your Excellencies, Leaders of BRICS nations,
Your Excellencies, Leaders of Global and Regional Institutions, 
Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations,
Honourable Ministers,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Allow me to begin by congratulating the Russian Federation and President Putin on chairing a successful BRICS Summit, as well as leading us all on adopting an excellent declaration.

The BRICS Outreach and BRICS Plus engagements are important platforms for developing strong ties among countries from the greater Global South and emerging markets.

We should use these platforms to foster meaningful engagement.

We should use the BRICS platform to contribute to social, economic and cultural development of our peoples.

We welcome the Russian initiatives that are aimed at strengthening a number of BRICS countries through the various networks aimed at improving the future of BRICS countries’ transport networks and connectivity under the theme ‘Innovation and Digitalisation of Transport’.

This will help us find ways to integrate and deepen our inter-connectedness in new and imaginative ways.

Work has already begun in this regard through initiatives like the International North-South Transport Corridor, which is a multimodal transportation corridor established from St Petersburg to Mumbai.

This corridor is an opportunity for this region to unlock new trade flows and trade routes in an increasingly multipolar world.

On the African continent, the African Continental Free Trade Area will unlock opportunities for trade and investment for local and global businesses.

It will create a number of opportunities that will lead to an integrated and connected continent.

The Single African Air Transport Market is another flagship project of the African Union Agenda 2063.

This is an initiative of the African Union to create a single unified air transport market in Africa to support the continent’s economic integration.

For BRICS and friends of BRICS, we need to use these projects to further connect the greater Global South. 

The promotion of greater regional connectivity and trade facilitation can only succeed in an environment of peace and stability. 

Excellencies,

South Africa is concerned about the military aggression by Israel against the people of Gaza, which we have characterised as genocide. This genocide led South Africa to approach the International Court of Justice with a view to stopping the killing of innocent women and children in Gaza. We believe the world cannot sit by and watch the suffering.

The world cannot afford a region-wide escalation of the conflict.

South Africa has been unwavering in advocating for a two state solution that would see an independent Palestinian state along the borders set out in 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital. This would be in line with UN resolutions,  international law and internationally agreed parameters.

We call on the international community and the UN Security Council in particular to address the spiralling conflict.

On our own continent, Sudan enters its second year of horrific conflict and devastation. This is another conflict the world seems to have forgotten about.

The protracted conflicts in the Sahel and Great Lakes regions in Africa persist.

We must find lasting solutions to all these conflicts.

We must remain committed to the peaceful resolution of all disputes through negotiation and inclusive dialogue. 

We must safeguard the ability of states to pursue independent foreign policy. 

We must safeguard the multilateral system, because it is the cornerstone of international relations, and foster an environment of peace and development.

Existing global institutional mechanisms need to be both strengthened and reformed to play a constructive role in international peace and security. 

We cannot allow conflicts to continue in perpetuity. 

We need to find paths to peace. 

In our quest for a more interconnected, just and prosperous world, we have the ability to foster an environment of peace through a focus on sustainable development.

We must continue to support nations and peoples who seek to end the cycle of conflict and choose the path of peace.

I thank you.