Members of the South African president’s security team have been detained in Poland
Members of Cyril Ramaphosa’s security who were supposed to accompany him on his mediation mission to Ukraine on Friday were detained in Poland, sparking a diplomatic incident, officials from both countries said.
The head of the service, General Wally Rudd, taxed the Polish authorities with racism and accused them of “at risk” Life of a Head of State. The Polish government dismissed as “invalid” its reports that some people on board the flight from South Africa did not have licenses to carry weapons and were therefore not authorized to disembark. “There were dangerous goods on the plane, which South Africans were not allowed to bring”The Ministry of External Affairs explains in a press release. “In addition, there were several people on board whose presence was not reported to the Polish authorities.”He continues.
A chartered flight took off from Pretoria early Thursday morning, carrying about 120 people, including members of the South African security forces and journalists, who were to accompany the head of state on a trip to Kiev as part of a mediation mission by African leaders. Cyril Ramaphosa arrived in the Polish capital on Thursday aboard the presidential plane, Inkwasi, and then traveled by train to Kiev, where he arrived on Friday, the president’s office said.
Presidential spokesperson Vincent Makwenya ruled on the incident “regrettable” He also said that he did not compromise on the security of the President. “The rest of the work is going well and as planned”Before adding: “The President has arrived safely in Kyiv. »
South African officials have been in talks with their Polish counterparts, breaking the deadlock and allowing retained security team members and journalists to continue their journey. On Friday afternoon, some journalists who had spent more than twenty-four hours on the tarmac were allowed to disembark.
After visiting Kew, the African mediators are expected to meet Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg on Saturday.
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