Maksym Subkh took part in the ceremony of official launching of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Botswana

In Gaborone, Republic of Botswana, Special Representative of Ukraine for the Middle East and Africa Maksym Subkh, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Botswana Lemogang Kwape took part in the official ceremony of the Embassy of Ukraine in this country.

The ceremony was attended by the representatives of the Government of Botswana, business circles, members of the diplomatic corps accredited in Gaborone, the Ukrainian community, and local media.

“I strongly believe that the establishment of the Ukrainian Diplomatic Mission in Gaborone will allow seamless and effective interaction between our countries and coordinate our stances on significant initiatives at the UN and other international institutions”, emphasized Maksym Subkh.

In his turn, Botswana's Minister Lemogang Kwape stressed the importance of opening the diplomatic mission of Ukraine in Botswana, which will give a new impetus to developing bilateral relations in all areas of mutual interest.

During a separate meeting with the Foreign Minister of Botswana, Maksym Subkh noted that Kyiv highly appreciates Gaborone's position on support of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, including voting in favor of the United Nations General Assembly Resolution "Principles of the Charter of the United Nations underlying a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine," approved on February 23, 2023. The Special Representative also informed about countering the ongoing armed aggression of the Russian Federation and recent large-scale Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure aimed at destroying the Ukrainian energy sector.

Lemogang Kwape received a personal letter from Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba and an invitation to join the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy`s Peace Formula. Particular attention was paid to preparation of the inaugural Global Peace Summit in Switzerland, in which the Botswana side was invited to participate.

During the visit to Botswana, the Special Representative met with Deputy Executive Secretary for Regional Integration of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Angele N'tumba. The parties discussed ways to intensify cooperation between Ukraine and this regional organization, which unites 16 Southern African states and whose secretariat is located in the capital of Botswana. 

"We believe that Ukraine and the SADC share common approaches towards the most pressing issues of the current international agenda and ready to develop partnerships in the areas such as  peace and security, economic growth, food security, alleviating poverty, climate change etc.”, said Maksym Subkh.

The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the SADC Secretariat and the Government of Ukraine concerning Economic and Technical Cooperation, which is being prepared for conclusion, will contribute to the institutionalization of Ukraine-SADC relations.  

In her turn, Angele N'tumba emphasized that agriculture, digital transformation, and education could become the priority areas of cooperation between Ukraine and SADC.

The participants of the meeting agreed that the accreditation of Ukraine's representative to SADC in April 2023 and the opening of the Embassy of Ukraine in Botswana will contribute to the development of mutually beneficial cooperation between Ukraine and SADC and its member states.

For reference: The Embassy of Ukraine in Botswana, opened as part of the expansion of Ukraine's diplomatic presence on the African continent, became the 16th Ukrainian diplomatic mission in Africa.