THE US–ISRAEL WAR ON IRAN AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR ZAMBIA AND AFRICA
Dr Cosmas Musumali, the General Secretary of the Socialist Party, said the party had followed with deep concern the outbreak of the military conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, which began on 28 February 2026, describing it as a dangerous escalation with serious global consequences.
He stated that the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, and the subsequent retaliatory strikes represented a blatant violation of international law and a grave assault on the principle of state sovereignty. He warned that such actions, undertaken without clear authorisation from the United Nations, were weakening the rules-based international order that smaller and developing nations such as Zambia rely on for their security and independence.
Dr Musumali explained that Zambia could not afford to view the war as a distant Middle Eastern problem, noting that any disruption to global oil supply routes would inevitably drive up fuel prices. He said Zambia’s total dependence on imported petroleum meant that higher fuel costs would quickly translate into increased transport fares, higher food prices, rising production costs in the mining sector, and added inflationary pressure on ordinary citizens.
He further observed that heightened global instability often depressed demand for industrial commodities, including copper, which remains Zambia’s economic backbone. He cautioned that a prolonged conflict could negatively affect copper prices at a time when the country urgently needed stable revenues to support development and meet its financial obligations.
Dr Musumali said Africa had painful historical experience of the consequences of powerful states acting without restraint, adding that wars in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan had shown that military interventions justified in the name of security frequently resulted in long-term instability and humanitarian suffering. He warned that decisions taken by powerful leaders such as Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu risked setting the world on a path of deeper insecurity whose costs would be disproportionately borne by weaker nations.
He also expressed concern that the conflict was sending a dangerous global message that nuclear weapons were the only reliable guarantee of national survival, arguing that this threatened the future of nuclear non-proliferation and increased the likelihood of more states seeking weapons of mass destruction.
Dr Musumali said the Socialist Party condemned all acts of aggression that violated international law and undermined national sovereignty, and called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a return to dialogue under the auspices of the United Nations.
He urged the Zambian government, working together with the African Union, to speak with a united and principled voice in defence of peace, multilateralism, and international law.
He further called on the government to prepare proactively for the economic shocks arising from the conflict, particularly in relation to fuel pricing, food security, and the stability of the mining sector.
Dr Musumali concluded by saying Zambia and Africa had no role in initiating the war but would bear part of its consequences, adding that it was therefore imperative for progressive forces to oppose the normalisation of imperial wars and to continue advocating for a just, peaceful, and rules-based international order.