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President Hage Geingob conveyed to European Union (EU) commissioners that they cannot force Namibia to take sides in the Ukraine-Russia war. He asserted that Namibia’s position on the war will always remain neutral. Geingob and the EU commissioners met at State House on Wednesday afternoon to sign a N$437 million bilateral cooperation deal.
President Hage Geingob conveyed to European Union (EU) commissioners that they cannot force Namibia to take sides in the Ukraine-Russia war. He asserted that Namibia’s position on the war will always remain neutral. Geingob and the EU commissioners met at State House on Wednesday afternoon to sign a N$437 million bilateral cooperation deal.
The president said this after the commissioners mentioned their gas dependence on Russia and how African countries abstained from the vote on the conflict at the United Nations Human Rights Council. He added that the Ukraine-Russia conflict is not a world war and should not be mixed with bilateral relationships. Africans abstaining does not mean that they are endorsing the killing of any person, and called on the EU to de-escalate the war. Europeans fight a war in Europe and say World War one or two. It is a European war because the fighting is in Europe. Africans are neutral but positive in saying no war is good.
EU commissioner Jutta Urpilainen responded by saying assisting Ukraine because the EU wants to defend a rule-based international order. It is international cooperation and multilateralism that the EU speaks about.EU has been providing different kinds of support; military, financial and humanitarian assistance. Because Ukrainians are not only fighting for their country, but also for the UN charter. The EU cannot afford to turn its back on the rest of the world because of the fact that even though the crisis is taking place on European soil, the crisis is global. Africa too is facing the consequences of the war because of food security and inflation.
European Union commissioner in charge of the internal market, Thierry Breton, said they understand the stance of African countries in terms of the conflict.
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Urpilainen and Breton launched an action plan with the National Planning Commission worth N$437 million and discussed plans for green hydrogen. This funding is also part of Namibia and the EU’s agreement to export critical raw materials and green hydrogen to European countries to ensure that Europe ceases its dependency on Russian gas.
