Russia Denies Plan To Test New Missile Off South Africa

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — On Wednesday, the Russian military denied that it planned to test its new Zircon hypersonic missiles during naval drills off the coast of South Africa this week. This week is the first anniversary of Ukraine’s invasion, and the drills will take place at the same time.

The Chinese navy is also participating in the Indian Ocean exercises, which come at a time when Russia’s relationship with the West is at its lowest point since the Cold War, and ties between China and the US are strained.

While Russian and Chinese warships prepared for joint drills in South Africa, President Vladimir Putin hosted China’s top foreign policy official at the Kremlin. These meetings showed that Russia’s relationship with China was getting stronger. This made people in the West worry that China might be ready to help Russia more in its war in Ukraine.

The involvement of Admiral Gorshkov, a frigate armed with hypersonic missiles, cast doubt on Russia’s intentions for the naval exercises. The ship arrived in Cape Town last week, emblazoned with the letters Z and V, which are also seen on weapons on the front lines in Ukraine and are used as patriotic symbols in Russia.

Claims the Zircon missiles can penetrate any missile defense system and strike targets on land and sea. However, a Russian navy officer in South Africa stated on Wednesday that the exercises would focus on maritime security, including piracy combat.

The drills will include “mutual maneuvering of the three sides, assistance to the suffering vessel in a disaster, the liberation of a captured vessel by the pirates, and artillery fire that, according to our schedule, does not include firing with hypersonic missiles,” according to Capt. Oleg Gladkiy. He communicated through a translator.

A South African military statement from last week said that the exercises will include the Admiral Gorshkov and a Russian oil tanker for refueling, as well as a Chinese destroyer, frigate, and support vessel, and a South African frigate.

Russia Denies Plan To Test New Missile Off South Africa

Ukraine’s ambassador to South Africa, Liubov Abravitova, criticized the drills’ timing, which will coincide with the first anniversary of the start of the war in Ukraine on Friday.

Abravitova noted that China, Russia, and South Africa, partners in the BRICS bloc of emerging economies, have previously conducted joint naval drills but that “it is a concern for us that they are happening at the time of the brutal Russian invasion.”

“The vessel that arrived on the South African shores brought a piece of the war to this peaceful land by having the letters Z and V, which they use as a marking on their military equipment while bombing Ukrainian cities,” Abravitova said in an interview with The Associated Press.

In protest, Admiral Gorshkov sailed a small yacht flying Ukraine’s flag in Cape Town’s harbor last week. On Wednesday, protesters gathered outside the Russian Embassy in Pretoria, South Africa’s capital. They criticized the Russian warship’s presence and South Africa’s decision to host it.

One protester held a sign that read, “DO NOT PLAY WITH BULLIES.”

South Africa, a key Western African partner, has been chastised for holding the naval exercises but has defended itself by claiming they were planned two years ago, well before Russia invaded Ukraine.

The exercises will occur near the Indian Ocean port cities of Durban and Richards Bay. Access to the media was restricted.

SOURCE – (AP)