South African National Defense Force Chief General Rudzani Maphwanya inspected an Iranian special forces unit last week, despite efforts by the South African government to minimize the importance of his visit.
As Breitbart News has reported, the South African government has been at pains to claim that Maphwanya went rogue, visiting Iran and making statements against the United States and Israel while in Iran.
The danger to South Africa is that it could be kicked out of the list of countries that benefit from the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), or that the U.S. could end negotiations on reducing a 30% tariff.
The problem for South Africa’s effort to do damage control is that Iran reported extensively on Maphwanya’s visit, casting doubt on the idea that it was somehow an individual initiative of the general on his own devices.
The Tehran Times reported:
Drawing direct parallels to South Africa’s history, Maphwanya condemned the Israeli regime’s actions in Gaza: “Having endured apartheid, we recognize Israel’s atrocities as a new form of apartheid. In defending the world’s oppressed, we stand alongside you.” He further commended Iran’s armed forces for their “admirable and peace-seeking humanitarian efforts” [sic].
Brigadier General Karim Cheshk, Deputy Commander of the Iranian Army’s Ground Forces, reciprocated the solidarity during the visit.
He highlighted Iran’s cross-border disaster relief operations as examples of “humanitarian conduct beyond national boundaries” and stated: “The Islamic Republic sincerely welcomes military cooperation with friendly nations under international frameworks to advance global peace and stability.”
Far from “humanitarian” efforts, the Iranian military supports global terrorism, has committed atrocities in regional conflicts, and includes elite units that are regarded by the U.S. as terrorist organizations.
South Afrian commentator William Saunderson-Meyer observed:
General Rudzani Maphwanya, Chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), met in Tehran with an array of Iran’s top military leadership, including its defence minister, in a calculated affront to Washington. The departments of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and Defence (DoD) are now scrambling to disclaim his anti-US rhetoric, even as he publicly committed South Africa to joint military ventures with a pariah state. Such denials should be taken with a generous pinch of salt.
It is simply inconceivable that Maphwanya acted without the blessing of both departments and of the Presidency itself. A visit of this sensitivity and provocation could only proceed with political clearance from the Presidency, procedural sign-off from DIRCO, and clear operational parameters from the DoD. That it went ahead, just as President Cyril Ramaphosa is trying to coax Donald Trump into softening tariffs and ‘resetting’ relations with the US, makes it not just reckless but an act of defiance.
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Maphwanya’s actions are extraordinary for the head of a military in a democracy. If the trip was unsanctioned and Maphwanya’s statements were not pre-approved, the implications are grave. As Chief of the SANDF, such unilateral actions would amount to a direct military intrusion into civilian affairs of near-treasonous proportions. Immediate dismissal and possible cashiering from the SANDF would be justified.
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