Six African leaders plan to spearhead and facilitate what they hope could be the beginning of peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv more than one year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Tuesday (16 May) that Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had agreed to meet a group of African leaders to discuss a potential peace plan for the conflict. Six African leaders plan to travel to Moscow and Kyiv “as soon as is possible” to help find a resolution to the war, Ramaphosa said. The South African leader said he had presented the peace initiative, which was drawn up by Zambia, Senegal, the Republic of Congo, Uganda, Egypt and South Africa, separately to Putin and Zelenskyy over the weekend. Considered one of Moscow’s closest allies on the continent, South Africa says it is impartial and has abstained from voting on UN resolutions on the war.

Source: The North Africa Journal May 17, 2023 11:02 UTC