The African National Congress' (ANC's) national working committee (NWC) wants to meet with United States ambassador Reuben Brigety after he attacked the ANC's policy on Ukraine that states the US provoked the war with Russia over Ukraine, hoping to put Russia in its place. 

Speaking to the media after the marathon meeting, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula said the NWC had given its thumbs up for party officials to meet Brigety amid the most intense diplomatic fallout yet between South Africa and the US over Russia. 

Brigety recently levelled accusations that SA had sold arms to Russia, which is engaged in a bitter war with neighbouring Ukraine, an allegation that the SA government didn't take kindly.

The ANC claims he has since apologised, although Brigety called his utterances a "misimpression".

Mbalula said ANC leaders would meet with Brigety to discuss the party's policies on Russia.

The ANC has insisted it would not condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine and that the government remained non-aligned in the conflict. 

He said the party works with "like-minded parties across the globe" and continuously strengthens ties with anti-apartheid movements, including the Democrats in the US.

"We are going to meet with the US ambassador to understand him quite closely in terms of the issues he has raised about the ANC... because, in our view, a diplomat, especially from a superpower like the US, must understand the separation of party approach and government," Mbalula said. 

ANC leaders over the weekend maintained that Brigety was out of line when he condemned the ANC government for its friendship with Russia.

"We were taken aback by the comments of the ambassador, for which he has apologised. Our Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco), led by Naledi Pandor, handled that matter and we're quite impressed by the steps taken to defend South Africa's territorial integrity and sovereignty. [Dirco] must continue to do that," Mbalula said.

He said the ANC had "not ventured into [expelling]" Brigety, but the NWC "had given us the greenlight so that we can meet with him to address some of the things that he's actually raised and clarify with him".

Turning to his party, Mbalula said the NWC would return in two weeks to KwaZulu-Natal to give "marching orders" to the party's provincial executive committee on the way forward after marathon meetings on the state of the organisation and governance.

He announced that more NEC deployees would be sent to assist those who already do political work in the province to boost the party's ground forces ahead of the 2024 elections.

The ANC's national leaders descended on KZN over the weekend to "strengthen" its provincial structure amid reports that it would be disbanded. 

"The [disbandment] of a structure is a last resort. We can't have ANC members working very hard and mobilising for the disbandment of a structure," Mbalula said.

"Where there is a sign of that [factions], we need to address that, especially here in KwaZulu-Natal and honestly bring sanity and make sure the organisation here is united and that members of the ANC are free and are not afraid to raise their issues in an orderly manner. The leadership must lead properly."

Mbalula also touched on murmurs about the possible return of Inkatha Freedom Party leader Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi to the ANC. He said the matter was being handled at the highest level in the ANC and by the party's former presidents alongside President Cyril Ramaphosa.

"It's not delegated to the province. The president did speak to the province about it. uMntwana ka Phindangene [Buthelezi] has spoken about it, including to the IFP. We are processing it at the highest level of the organisation," Mbalula said, adding that there were no timeframes.

"We respect the wish[es] of people. If somebody says, 'before I die, I want to come back home', we don't fight with that. That is the wish of a person. uMntwana has not expressed that in corners; he's expressed it openly."