Ramaphosa’s double game has handed Washington the MTN weapon

CYRIL Ramaphosa speaks as if he is leading a liberation struggle, but governs like a manager of Western interests.

- 

On the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) stage he calls for de-dollarisation, multipolarity, and resistance to Western domination. At home, he keeps the banking system tied to United States (US) compliance rules, the rand pegged to the dollar's movements, and our major corporations fully exposed to American jurisdiction. This talk-left, keep-right approach has delivered the inevitable: Washington has found its opening and is using it to maximum effect through the MTN Group Limited (MTN) grand jury probe.

On August 18, the United States Department of Justice (DoJ), via a grand jury, launched an investigation into MTN over its past operations in Afghanistan and its 49% stake in Iranian mobile provider Irancell. The allegations - which MTN denies - include paying protection money to armed groups in Afghanistan, funnelling revenue to Iranian state-linked entities, and corruptly securing its licence in Tehran. According to the US filings, these actions allegedly contributed to attacks in which American soldiers, contractors, and Israeli civilians were killed. MTN says it has not sent funds to Irancell since 2018 and insists it complies with global sanctions.