Amb Emmanuel Mwamba writes:
Why South Africa’s ties with Iran are a problem for the US
The US is investigating South Africa’s ties with Iran – a move that could trigger sanctions against some of the country’s top leaders.
The connection between Iran and South Africa has turned heads and sparked an investigation from the United States that could lead to sanctions – but the ties go back to the inimitable former president Nelson Mandela.
The connection between Iran and South Africa has turned heads and sparked an investigation from the United States that could lead to sanctions – but the ties go back to the inimitable former president Nelson Mandela.
At a joint press conference with former US president Bill Clinton in Cape Town in 1998, Mandela was unapologetic about South Africa’s newly-established relations with Iran, Cuba and Libya.
Their leaders were amongst the first Mandela invited to South Africa after the African National Congress (ANC) took office in 1994.
More than three decades later, South Africa’s ongoing good relations with Iran could have severe consequences for the country and some of its leaders.