South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will this week visit the United States to hold talks with US President Joe Biden in Washington, D.C. on Friday, International Relations and Cooperation Minister Naledi Pandor has announced.
The minister also announced on Tuesday that Pretoria would next week take part in the high-level segment of the annual UN General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York City from 20 to 27 September.
The president’s visit to the US provides government an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations through engagement and deepen multilateralism through the United Nations (UN), a primary vehicle through which the international community must confront the challenges facing the world, Pandor said.
According to the minister, the two leaders will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest, including trade and investment, climate change, food security, energy, and peace and security.
“President Ramaphosa will reaffirm the importance of the strategic and mutually beneficial relations between South Africa and the United States,” she said.
She added that the president would emphasise the need for enhanced multilateralism and dialogue, through which the challenges facing humanity could be addressed during the meeting with the US leader.
“These include the urgent need to stimulate economic recovery in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic,” the minister said.
The US is South Africa’s third largest trading partner after China and the European Union, with more than 600 American companies operating locally.
“South Africa’s participation in the general debate of the UNGA77 is a strategic opportunity for the promotion of our national and foreign policy objectives, as espoused in Chapter 7 of the National Development Plan, positioning South Africa in the world Pandor said.”
NM/as/APA