Ukraine, the 2023 BRICS Summit and South Africa’s non-alignment crisis

Abstract

The African National Congress (ANC)’s historic links to the Soviet Union, its interpretation of non-alignment as being about resisting Western imperialism, and its contention that the abrogation by the West of its commitment not to expand further East, shaped the party’s initial response to the Russia-Ukraine war. Whereas certain factions within the ruling ANC interpreted non-alignment in ideological terms, others saw non-alignment rather as a strategy to enhance autonomy. For many South Africans and some government officials this version of non-alignment involved obtaining autonomy through neutrality as a strategy rather than an ideology. These differences of interpretation—coinciding with Pretoria’s role as host of the BRICS Summit where Putin was expected to appear—put South Africa between a rock and a hard place, triggering domestic opposition. However, this dilemma also enabled proponents of non-alignment as a strategy to prevail, culminating in South Africa adopting a more balanced position since June 2023.