South Africa is sending arms to Russia because the world is at war. For now, Ukraine is the battlefield. And, for now, Russians and Ukrainians are the combatants.

But countries are taking sides. They are siding with Ukraine and the forces of democracy, or with Russia and the forces of autocracy.

Some countries are hedging their bets. China is the most notable among them. Never mind that it’s doing so in a ham-fisted fashion. For example, China claims it’s acting as a peace broker. But it’s also propagating Russia’s claim that Ukraine is not even a country.

Some countries are declaring Swiss neutrality. South Africa is most notable among them. Except that, it’s tipping its hand. And breaking news about it sending arms to Russia is only the latest tip.

South Africa is sending arms to Russia

The US ambassador to South Africa on Thursday accused the South African government of delivering arms and ammunition to a sanctioned Russian cargo vessel late last year, local media said. …

At the time, opposition member of parliament and shadow Defense Minister Kobus Marais said in a statement that goods were loaded off and onto the ship during the overnight hours and demanded answers from the government.

(CNN, May 12, 2023)

South Africa has shown utter contempt for any notion of neutrality. It invited both Russia and China to conduct war games earlier this year, for Christ’s sake.

That’s like a neutral Egypt inviting Germany and Japan to conduct war games during WWII. Only in dystopian Russia would anyone see that as an act of neutrality.

Why is South Africa secretly arming Russia?

In my post on its war games, I explained the ties that bind democratic South Africa to autocratic Russia. South Africa credits the old Soviet Union for supporting their liberation struggle. Many African countries do. At the same time, they harbor resentment because the United States was supporting their colonial oppressors.

There’s no denying the kernel of truth in that. But US corporate leaders and political activists were indispensable. And there’s no denying that. They championed that struggle. And, without them, Blacks in South Africa would still be living under White apartheid.

But I suspect South Africa is just doing China’s dirty work. In another post, I explained the economic reasons why China would not dare supply arms to Russia. But it could easily compensate South Africa for any fallout it might suffer for doing so. And it’s not like South Africa had any choice.

You might think South Africa is betraying its values. In fact, it began doing so the day it elected demagogue Jacob Zuma as president. Black South Africa has been aping apartheid South Africa ever since.

Again, this war is not playing out like Chinese Chess (or Xiang-qi). It’s really quite simple, folks.