Press release on Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s meeting with Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa Naledi Pandor

On June 10, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met with Minister of International Relations and Cooperation of South Africa Naledi Pandor on the sidelines of the BRICS Foreign Ministers meeting in Nizhny Novgorod.

The meeting focused on topical issues of bilateral strategical partnership, with an emphasis on expanding trade and economic cooperation. Both parties expressed an interest in deepening political dialogue and reaffirmed their commitment to effective cooperation at the UN, BRICS, the G20 and other international platforms.

The participants also discussed further opportunities for the contribution of South Africa and a number of other representatives of the Global South in finding solutions to the Ukraine crisis proceeding from the common understanding of the origins and causes of the crisis. During the discussion on Middle East issues, concerns were raised about the ongoing escalation in the zone of the Palestinian-Israeli confrontation. Additionally, the ministers considered some aspects of the current situation in Africa and Europe.