South Africa acknowledges Israel's "right to exist", however that doesn't "diminish the Palestinian right to statehood", according to Mikatekiso Kubayi, a researcher fellow at the Institute for Global Development.
"Instead of rather taking sides, South Africa sticks to principle and pushes rather for peace talks, [a] negotiation for a final settlement that can suit everybody. No settlement in this instance will ever be perfect, by the way. It simply won't because once there was a Palestine and then there was a Palestine in Israel," he says.
Minister Pandor's proposal of a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East is "a good one" and "ought to be supported". However, a problem is that the state of Israel "simply does not listen to anyone".
"[Israel] has ignored countless UN resolutions. It only does what it wants because it's got the backing of the United States, the EU, and so on. How easy would it really be to persuade [Israel] to give up the one thing that it would argue 'this is a deterrent'," the researcher argues.
The expert expresses doubt over the US being perceived as a "global policeman", as "everyone know it's not about right or wrong", but rather "it's about interests".
"They essentially do whatever they want because they can. So it's not about right or wrong, but simply because they can. And if something is in their interest, that's what they will do. And they explicitly say so, by the way. They explicitly say so. They act solely in their interests," Mr Kubayi says.
To hear what else the researcher had to say, check out the entire episode of the AfroVerdict podcast, brought to you by Sputnik Africa.
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