COMMENT: Continuation of sanctions against Zimbabwe not justified
President Mnangagwa and his high-powered delegation are in Equatorial Guinea for a three-day State visit as he continues with his engagement and re-engagement crusade.
On Tuesday President Mnangagwa and his Equatorial Guinea counterpart President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo presided over the signing of six memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in various sectors of the economy.
Speaking after the signing ceremony, President Mnangagwa said he and his counterpart President Mbasogo were determined to deepen and consolidate the relations between the two countries.
In his response, President Mbasogo said the resources of his country should also benefit other African countries like Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe and Equatorial Guinea enjoy good relations which continue to grow from strength to strength.
The Zimbabwean Government under the Second Republic is on a mission to strengthen the country’s international relations hence its engagement and re-engagement with countries across the globe. Last year Zimbabwe and Mozambique elevated their Joint Permanent Commission on Co-operation (JPCC) to Bi-National Commission (BNC).
Mozambique is one of Zimbabwe’s top trading partners in the region. The country also signed seven MoUs with Kenya and five additional MoUs with Botswana as it continues to strengthen its bilateral relations. A week ago Zimbabwe and Belarus signed eight bilateral agreements covering various sectors of the economy during the Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s State visit.
Zimbabwe seeks to be a friend to all and an enemy to none and as such it is even seeking engagement with countries with which it has previously had little or no engagement. We hope the international community recognises the Second Republic’s position regarding international relations and will assist the country to enjoy its sovereignty.
We have said it before that given the ongoing political and economic reforms as well as the engagement and re-engagement efforts, there is no justification to continue maintaining the illegal sanctions against Zimbabwe. Call for the unconditional removal of sanctions have come from Sadc, the AU, China, Cuba and the Non-Aligned Movement but surprisingly those that imposed them seem not to be moved.
All those calling for the removal of the illegal sanctions are agreed that the sanctions are adversely affecting Zimbabwe’s efforts to grow its economy and improve the welfare of its people.
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