Issued by: The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
PRESS STATEMENT
Newspaper reports this morning (15/11/95) suggested a divergence of opinion between the President and his Office on the one hand and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the other, on South Africa's approach to the Nigerian question.
The perceived divergence arose from a possible missunderstanding of the positions which I explained at a media briefing on Tuesday 14 November 1995. I stated that the capacity of South Africa to impose economic sanctions on Nigeria should not be exaggerated, citing the relatively small trade between the two countries. I pointed out that South Africa does have the moral and political weight to influence events and would use it to help ensure that there was a speedy movement towards democracy in Nigeria.
The abovementioned positions do not mean that South Africa is opposed to economic sanctions being imposed on Nigeria, neither do they mean that South Africa cannot call on those who do have the economic power to impose economic sanctions. They only represent our position as a country via-a-vis the imposition of sanctions by ourselves.
Any future action by South Africa would be taken in within the context of, and after consultation with, the Committee of Eight Member States appointed at the Commonwealth summit, as well as with our partners in the Southern African Development Community, Organisation of African Unity and the United Nations.
President Nelson Mandela's call for sanctions by those countries that have the economic power to do so, is an exercise of the political and moral clout which I referred to.
The President and the Government of National Unity are concerned about the situation in Nigeria. For that reason, President Mandela and the government have consistently been involved, almost single-handedly, in efforts to find a solution to Nigeria's problems since the President's inauguration on 10 May 1994.
South Africa remains firmly committed to the restoration of democracy in Nigeria and will do everything in its power to achieve this goal.
ISSUED BY THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
PRETORIA 15 NOVEMBER 1995