An active member of the Non-Aligned Movement –the country chaired the NOAL before Malaysia and is now a member of the troika together with Cuba and Malaysia- South Africa has played a key role in the NOAL Movement, says the African nation’s ambassadress to Cuba, Her Excellency Thenjiwe Mtintso.

“In this sense,” she points out, “it’s important to underscore that earlier this year, in January, the troika huddled in South Africa to address very important issues, chiefly those related to the NOAL Movement’s transformations and reforms.

“On the other hand, the Republic of South Africa supports Cuba’s chairmanship and we’re very pleased with the fact that the 14th NOAL Summit will take place in Havana because we consider this country has what it takes to play a major role in reforming and strengthening the Movement, especially in terms of the South-South solidarity.”

“We’re also very pleased with our chairing the Group of 77 and China because we believe both Cuba and South Africa, from their own positions, could further buttress our relationships and support the underdeveloped countries.”

Her Excellency Thenjiwe Mtintso asserts her country has been backing up Cuba’s stance in NOAL-related multilateral and bilateral discussions. “One of the things we see eye to eye with is that there’re some NOAL members that hamper the advance of certain progressive positions within the Movement they disagree with. In this respect, Cuba is supporting what has been called a majority consensus in an effort to prevent a handful of countries from stopping the advance of the NOAL Movement.

“I believe Cuba’s longstanding stance toward the underdeveloped countries will enable this island nation to further beef up those positions from the NOAL Movement’s chairmanship.”

How good are the relations between the two countries right now?

“Relations between our two countries are pretty strong. Those ties hark back before 1994 because Cuba helped South Africa to win its freedom, and that’s something we’ll be forever grateful for. As we speak, Cuba continues giving us a helping hand in the reconstruction of our nation, mainly in such fields as healthcare, education, building and in many other sectors that still pose major challenges for the black population.

“We’ve also supported Cuba in the international scene, mostly in United Nations meetings. Our votes have always been on Cuba’s side when addressing human rights issues and, of course, when voting against the U.S. blockade.

“Both countries have signed programs in a number of fields. In South Africa there’re ongoing solidarity campaigns for the island nation and the freedom of the five Cuban heroes unfairly jailed in the U.S. for fighting against terrorism. Moreover, we have the Cuba-South Africa Solidarity Association, and we want to make province-to-province ties stronger through visits paid by delegations and political and civil authorities –in addition to the strengthening of relationships at a national level.”