South Africa's army chief has been criticised after he
reportedly pledged military and political support to Iran during a recent visit
to the country.
Members of South
Africa's governing coalition have accused General Rudzani Maphwanya of
"reckless grandstanding", while President Cyril Ramaphosa confirmed
he would meet the general to discuss his "ill-advised" trip.
The row comes as
South Africa navigates tense relations with the US, which has taken exception
to the country's ties with Iran, among other issues.
The Democratic
Alliance, part of South Africa government, called for Gen Maphwanya to be
"court-martialled".
It said his comments had gone "beyond
military-to-military discussions and entered the realm of foreign policy".
Gen Maphwenya's
trip was aimed at strengthening military cooperation but during his meeting
with his Iranian counterparts, he said that the two countries had common goals,
and always stood "alongside the oppressed and defenceless people of the
world", according to Iranian publication Tehran Times.
He also took aim
at Israel over the continued war in Gaza as he reiterated support for the
Palestinian people and told officials his visit "carries a political
message" from Ramaphosa's administration.
The South African
government has distanced itself from these comments.
The defence
department labelled them "unfortunate", while the foreign affairs
ministry said they "do not represent the government's official foreign
policy stance".
Ramaphosa's
spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said the president didn't know about the trip or
sanction it.
"The visit
was ill-advised and more so, the expectation is that the general should have
been a lot more circumspect with the comments he makes," Mr Magwenya told
reporters during a briefing on Thursday.
Gen Maphwanya has
since returned home, Mr Magwenya confirmed.
South Africa's
strong ties with Iran have been a bone of contention with the US and was one of
the reasons relations between the two nations soured earlier this year.
US President
Donald Trump, in an executive order cutting off aid to South Africa, accused
Africa's largest economy of "reinvigorating" relations with Iran - an
implacable foe of the US.
Trump also falsely
accused Ramaphosa's government of persecuting white people and condemned it for
bringing a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice
(ICJ).
According to
think-tank the Institute for Security Studies, South Africa's relationship with
Iran dates back to 1995, when a joint commission of cooperation was formed.
