For the fourth time this year, Botswana has cast a vote against Russia at the United Nations – the same Russia that has warned that at a time of its own choosing, it will punish countries that have voted against it at the UN.
Last Wednesday, Botswana voted alongside 142 other UN member states to condemn Russia’s annexation of four regions in Ukraine (Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia) that it partially controls. As a weak Third World country, Botswana is walking on egg shells because it really doesn’t want to antagonise Russia – which has claimed that western nations, namely the United States, coerce other nations to vote with it.
Botswana’s first anti-Russia came after Russia invaded Ukraine in February this year. Russia itself says that this was “a special military operation.” The second vote was in April when Botswana abstained from a vote to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council. Ahead of the latter vote, Russia circulated a note that read: “It is worth mentioning that not only support for such an initiative, but also an equidistant position in the vote (abstention or non-participation) will be considered as an unfriendly gesture. The position of each country will be taken into account both in the development of bilateral relations and in the work on the issues important for it within the framework of the U.N.”
“Equidistant” literally means at equal distances but as used by Russia, essentially means “having the same effect.” On that basis, while Botswana’s abstention might have looked like sitting on the fence, it actually had the same effect as a “yes” vote because it endorsed the suspension of Russia from the Human Rights Council. An outright “yes” would have openly antagonised Russia but Botswana – as 56 other countries – didn’t want to so openly antagonise Russia.
The third vote, which happened last month as heads of state converged in New York for the annual UN General Assembly, granted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky an exception to virtually address the chamber. UN officials had established that speeches in this year’s high-level session of the General Assembly had to be delivered in person. Russia could get only six other countries — Cuba, Eritrea, Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua and Syria — to vote against a relaxation of that rule.
Condemning Russia’s annexation of the four Ukrainian regions is the fourth time Botswana has voted against a country that it has had otherwise friendly relations with since 1970. In that year, the embassy of the Soviet Union and the High Commission of Botswana in London exchanged diplomatic notes. In 1976, Russia opened an embassy in Gaborone while Botswana covers Russia from its embassy in Sweden and also an honorary consulate in Moscow.
Botswana’s anti-Russia votes are typically not reported in state media but it would seem that Ukraine and some western have adopted a strategy to communicate this stance directly to the world on their own. This puts the government on the spot and might ultimately force it to itself communicate its anti-Russia stance directly to the world as well as to the nation.
In August, Zelensky placed a telephone to President Mokgweetsi Masisi and thereafter, tweeted: “Had the 1st conversation in the history of bilateral relations with the President of Botswana @OfficialMasisi. Thanked for condemning Russia’s actions, support in the UN & other platforms. Urged to join restrictive measures. Assured that [emoji of Ukraine flag] will remain a reliable food exporter.” Conversely, Masisi tweet was diplomatic: “I have just concluded a tele-meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine. Beyond the recognition of bilateral relations that subsist between our countries, I affirmed and reiterated solidarity with the people of Ukraine and encouraged a peaceful solution. We also deliberated on the need for Ukraine to continue grain exportation to ensure food security particularly for African countries.”
This discrepancy resulted in a brief debate in parliament during which MPs asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Lemogang Kwape, to explain what exactly had happened. The debate happened on the back of a question by the Gaborone Central MP, Tumiso Mangwegape-Healy, who asked Kwape to explain “why the statements from the two presidents following their interaction appear to be different.”
The minister’s response in parliament was also in diplomatese. He said that Botswana was guided by the principles of good neighbourliness, peaceful co-existence and peaceful resolution of conflict. He added that in line with the UN Charter and “strong belief in the settlement of disputes by peaceful means”, the country would “continue to contribute to international peace and security by advocating for peaceful resolution of conflicts, collaborative dialogue and diplomacy through regional and international mechanisms.”
Despite concerted effort by MPs, Kwape would not give a straightforward answer. Ironically though, he would later make a profound point which, ironically, expressed a much stronger sentiment than “condemn.” As the minister launched into another round of equivocation, Nkange MP Dr. Never Tshabang, interjected with repetition of a question that he had asked earlier but hadn’t been answered: “Are we foregoing Russia’s scholarship and technical assistance?” Kwape’s answer was that “scholarships couldn’t be equated to human life.” Kwape’s answer was that “scholarships couldn’t be equated to human life.”
The similarity between what Zelensky did and what the European Union office in Botswana did last Thursday is striking.
Following the vote condemning the annexation, the EU posted to its Facebook page, a statement that, like Zelensky’s, puts Botswana on the spot and communicates directly with members of the public: “The EU welcomes the vote by the overwhelming majority of nations – including Botswana – at the United Nations General Assembly on the Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations.” The admins tagged the Office of the President and Kwape’s ministry. They also published a screenshot of the vote results displayed on a large screen inside the auditorium of the General Assembly. The blue cross against Botswana’s name shows that it voted “in favour” of the anti-Russia resolution. There is no way the EU wouldn’t know that the Botswana government isn’t comfortable discussing this issue in public – Kwape’s equivocation in parliament was ample proof of that.
Oddly, some SADC countries (namely South Africa and Zimbabwe) have stuck with Russia the entire time. Interestingly, when the invasion began, their citizens in Ukraine were also the targets of missiles that Russia lobbed indiscriminately at Ukrainian cities. An advance warning would have alerted foreigners and everybody else in Ukraine of impending danger but Russian repeatedly and deceptively denied that it wanted to attack Ukraine.
