Russian roulette

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟱 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰. PetroSA, South Africa’s state-owned oil and gas company, has successfully hidden most of its bad investments over the years. By 2020, poor decisions at the secretive company had wasted billions and almost closed it down. But it was given a lifeline when Mineral Resources and Energy Minister, Gwede Mantashe - determined to save PetroSA - insisted Eskom buy its diesel from the parastatal. Now, it’s on a new drive to partner with private business. A recent contract with the Russian Gazprom Bank has caused a stir, but a far larger deal (signed in secret) will make a controversial businessman a major player in the oil and gas industry. We lift the lid on this new profit-sharing deal in the oil and gas fields off the Southern Cape Coast. Find more exclusive content on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟯𝟬 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. South Africa’s friendship with Russia is a political football that temporarily came to rest last week. On Friday, the High Court confirmed that we’d be required to arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes were he to attend the BRICS summit in Johannesburg next month. The Department of Justice has now requested a warrant of arrest, while the Presidency confirmed that Putin will attend the summit virtually. It’s a temporary solution to a diplomatic impasse – arrest a high-profile guest or refuse and violate international law – but the debate around Russia’s engagement in Africa is far from settled. Is modern Russia a colonial power bent on exploiting the continent, or does it remain the Soviet friend of its liberation movements? Carte Blanche examines this political quagmire. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟯 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. It’s a story that spans continents – from Europe to the USA, and to Kuruman in the Northern Cape. In 2004, Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg arrived in South Africa looking for manganese mining opportunities and a BEE partner to win the mining rights. Several politically connected entities jostled for the privilege, but one consortium stood out. It included the ANC's investment holding company, Chancellor House and the little-known Kuruman Community Trust. The consortium won the mining rights and Vekselberg invested $350 million to build the mine. Today, the mine is the third-largest manganese producer in the world and the shareholders should all be reaping the benefits. But that hasn’t been the case for the poor local villagers who are beneficiaries of the Kuruman Community Trust. While the politically connected earn millions from the mine, they’ve been reduced to little more than R1000 a year and an annual Christmas hamper. Believing they were simply used to acquire the mining rights, they survive on pensions and government grants in villages with no running water, no inside toilets, and no jobs. In this two-part investigation, Carte Blanche examines how the poor and disenfranchised were used to line the pockets of the rich. .. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝟳 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. The ANC’s political allegiance to its Cold War friend, Russia, is causing a political rumpus as a potential visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin forces the South African government to make tough choices. This includes whether it leaves the International Criminal Court (ICC) which may reset its already-damaged global reputation for the worse. The ICC has issued a warrant of arrest for Putin for the kidnapping of thousands of Ukrainian children during the conflict between the neighbours. As South Africa is a signatory to the Rome Statute – which underpins the ICC – it would be obliged to arrest Putin if he comes to South Africa for the BRICS summit in August. The Premier of the Western Cape, Alan Winde says he will get his unarmed Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) officers to arrest Putin if he strays into the Western Cape, a province under the political control of the opposition. While this throws up the spectacle of the absurd, it has set the cat further among the pigeons, sending the government into a legal huddle as it tries to work out what to do next. Is this political hot potato just one more milestone in South Africa’s slow drift to isolationism, compounded by greylisting, industrial-scale corruption, and clumsy foreign policy? Carte Blanche examines the consequences of pandering to Putin. Your favourite episodes are now available on Carte Blanche: The Podcast: https://linktr.ee/carteblanchetv