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Zimbabwe Defense Forces Remain Shield Against Neocolonialism, President Says

The Zimbabwe Defense Forces (ZDF) were established in 1980 with a three-branch structure consisting of the national army, navy, and air force. In November 2017, the ZDF declared a military coup that led to the resignation of the former President Robert Mugabe and the new government led by Emmerson Mnangagwa.
Sputnik
The Zimbabwe Defense Forces represents the resistance against neocolonialism, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said on Wednesday during the graduation of the 36th Joint Command and Staff Course at the Zimbabwe Defense Forces Staff College.

"As the Zimbabwe Defense Forces, you remain the epitome of our resistance to the neo-colonial onslaught and machinations by our erstwhile detractors and former colonizers," he said.

According to the head of state, the work of the defense forces for the protection of the country's security goes in accordance with the constitution.

"We recognize and remain proud that ZDF continue to excel as guarantors of peace and security in line with the Constitution," he assured.

The president emphasized that all the security training institutions of the country should continue to entrench patriotism and Pan-Africanism.

"This track record and culture of hard work, vigilance, zeal, commitment and professionalism as well as your collective patriotic and Pan-African spirit must be continuously entrenched across all our security-related training institutions," he stressed.

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He explained that in order to achieve Zimbabwe's development plan of becoming a middle-income society by 2030, the ZDF must "remain alive" to developments in all sectors of the economy.

Continental and International Cooperation

The president recognized that a continental and regional military exchange program is an opportunity to learn from the experiences of other countries.

"Similarly, the growing transnational nature of armed conflicts in Africa and internationalization of intrastate conflicts bring to the fore the need to share lessons with regards peace building, conflict prevention, management and resolution in our sub-region and the continent as a whole," he said.

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According to him, the participation of students from other African countries will be a contribution to the security of the continent.

"The participation of students drawn from countries such as Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, Namibia and Nigeria is applauded. [...] Such participation will undoubtedly enhance collective regional security and contribute to the silencing of guns on the continent," he added.

He also recognized the important role China has played in the country's history and the strong ties that continue to deepen.

"Zimbabwe’s history is embedded in the liberation struggle to which China played a pivotal role. To date, the relations between Zimbabwe and China continue to deepen across all sectors, under the Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership framework, for shared prosperity," he said.

The Zimbabwe Defense Forces headquarters was established in 1980 and the Ministry of Defense in 1994. The ZDF participated in a military coup that led to the resignation of long-term President Robert Mugabe and a new government under incumbent leader Emmerson Mnangagwa in 2017.