Tinubu arrives S’Africa; Putin congratulates Ramaphosa on re-election

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has arrived in South Africa to attend the inauguration of President Cyril Ramaphosa after his re-election.

On Tuesday evening, the President arrived at Waterkloof Air Force Base on the outskirts of Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital.

The South African presidency disclosed this in a post on X.

“South Africa regards Nigeria as a strategic partner in the context of bilateral relations, the West Africa region, and the continent in the pursuance of the African Agenda, South – South cooperation, and in the promotion of a rules-based international system,”

“Our two countries share a common vision on issues of political and economic integration in Africa.” Tinubu and Ramaphosa last met in New York at the 78th United Nations General Assembly in September 2023 where the Nigerian president asked Ramaphosa to deepen economic relations between the two countries.

Meanwhile, the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin has congratulated Ramaphosa on his re-election as president, reflecting continued good relations with Pretoria despite uncertainty over Moscow’s more than two-year-old invasion of Ukraine.

“Hope was expressed for continued joint work on further strengthening of the partnership between Russia and South Africa in all its aspects,” a statement said on the Kremlin website, referring to Putin’s telephone call to Ramaphosa.

Since the 2022 invasion, Russia and Ukraine have vied for support from African nations, with each country’s foreign minister undertaking several regional tours.

South Africa initially condemned Russia’s February 2022 invasion but has since taken a more nuanced stance, including abstaining from several votes in the U.N. General Assembly condemning Russia's actions.