The first time Nelson Mandela visited Germany was in June 1990.
Only four months after being released from 27 years in apartheid prisons.
Only seven months after the Berlin Wall fell.
My country was undergoing profound change and preparing to overcome more than four decades of division at that time.
In this spirit of profound change, our two nations shared the experience of a peaceful revolution.
Reconciliation and reunification were social and political challenges that both our peoples wanted to solve.
Why not learn from each other?
South Africa and Germany also wanted to open the European market to South Africa.
We aimed for closer economic cooperation and investments between our two countries – something that would benefit us both.
German companies had already maintained a strong economic presence in South Africa since the 1950s.
But that firm presence rested on a difficult and unpleasant truth:
While there was considerable civil society support in Germany for the anti-apartheid struggle, at the same time – despite international and South African criticism – German companies had cooperated with the apartheid regime.
And West German governments had wrongly maintained rather close relations with the country.
Nelson Mandela knew this.
And yet, he extended his hand in reconciliation.
He wanted to build a friendship with Germany not overshadowed by the past.
This became the basis for a friendship whose fruits we have been harvesting for more than 30 years now.
At the core of our close political relations is our Bi-National Commission, our bilateral high-level group that meets regularly to develop our bilateral cooperation further.
The last meeting took place in April – headed by Minister Lamola and myself. Together we celebrated in Berlin the 30th anniversary of our Bi-National Commission.
On that occasion, we elevated our relationship to a new level: a Strategic Partnership – a very significant step!
To some, this might sound as empty political poetry.
But it is not!
It reflects that from the very beginning, in 1995, our cooperation was indeed mutually beneficial.
Our relationship has never been one-sided.
If you need evidence, you could talk to the over 600 German companies that are active here, providing a workplace for over 100,000 people.
These businesses are at the core of our close economic ties, leading to a yearly trade volume of €20.1 billion, that is over R375 billion, between our countries.
You could also ask the more than 300,000 German tourists, my daughter and her husband belong to these, who travelled to South Africa in the last 12 months alone.
Your country certainly is a dream destination for many Germans.
We do not want to stop here.
Through our new bilateral Joint Action Plan, signed by Minister Lamola and me in Berlin, we will systematically intensify our cooperation along over 90 planned concrete measures.
It is fair to say: what was set in motion between South Africa and Germany in the mid-1990s has not only endured, but has continued to grow and deepen.
Back then, at the outset of the era of globalisation they already sensed that this would bring not only opportunities, but also profound challenges for both our countries.
And they also understood that responding to major challenges would require strong and reliable partnerships all over the world.
Bilateral and multilateral partnerships are more important than ever.
Especially between Europe and Africa.
Today, our new strategic partnership between Germany and South Africa is a role model for that.
We work closely together because we know that today’s local challenges are tomorrow’s global problems.
Take security: We all understand the far-reaching effects of Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine.
In Europe, the war has shattered long-held illusions, particularly in my own country: the belief that economic interdependence and trade would guarantee stable political relations.
That war on the European continent had become a thing of the past.
And it has profoundly shattered our sense of security.
Today, we see all too clearly that Russia has deceived us for many years and that it continues to pose an existential security threat to us.
To put this into perspective: the Iskander missiles that Russia has deployed in Kaliningrad would take only a matter of minutes to reach Berlin.
That is part of Europe’s strategic reality today.
Beyond Europe, it undermines the international order as a whole and has severe repercussions worldwide.
Let us recall that in 2023, President Ramaphosa travelled to Ukraine and, together with a delegation of African leaders, visited Bucha.
The town where Russian forces committed a horrible massacre against the Ukrainian civilian population.
I believe that this historical initiative never received the recognition it deserves even beyond its symbolic value: African leaders travelling to Europe in an effort to help restore peace.
We all know that the African Peace Initiative did not end the war.
But it was an historic example of African agency in a globalised world.
South Africa has long-standing experience in mediation and peace processes and chose to bring it to Europe.
Europe should learn from that experience as we look to the future.
And as both our countries know, persistence is a crucial part of politics, and especially international politics.
That was one of the reasons why in April this year we hosted the Sudan Conference in Berlin.
Sudan is suffering from the biggest man-made humanitarian catastrophe of our time.
Yet it has not received the international attention it merits.
It is our intention and our obligation to change that.
Together with the AU and the UN, we brought together 60 countries, representatives of over 50 NGOs and international organisations, as well as Sudanese civil society actors.
The conference not only helped to mobilise urgently needed additional humanitarian support for the Sudanese people.
It also enabled us to agree on principles for a peaceful resolution of the conflict: principles that were subsequently endorsed by 22 states and organisations, including countries that are involved in the conflict.
Despite such considerable international pressure, peace has not yet returned to Sudan.
It nevertheless remains our duty to continue working towards it, relentlessly and without losing hope!
I am glad and relieved to know that our countries stand united in this regard.
When Nelson Mandela delivered a speech to the German Parliament during his visit in 1996, he recognised in the peaceful reunification of Germany a fundamental principle.
Which he described as “the wonder of creation: that the best can emerge from the worst.”
It’s a beautiful statement.
At the same time, I read it as a warning:
The best can always regress to the worst!
Because peace is not a given.
Not in Europe, not in Africa, not in the Middle East, nor anywhere else.
Today, the international rules, norms and also the multilateral institutions we have built up over decades are under heavy strain.
Nowhere is this more evident than at the UN.
Today, the UN can no longer live up to its full potential because the very foundations of the UN system are increasingly being challenged.
At the same time, a lot of the criticism the organisation is facing is justified.
In its current structure, the UN no longer reflects the realities of today’s world.
Too often, it still represents a global order of the past and not of the present.
Many countries rightly feel that they are not sufficiently represented.
This is particularly true for the Security Council.
There can be no genuinely representative UN without permanent African representation on the Security Council.
But the crisis of multilateralism extends beyond.
Last year’s highly successful G20 Summit in Johannesburg demonstrated that South Africa is an indispensable member of the G20.
To exclude South Africa means sidelining an important African voice and a regional economic and political powerhouse.
This can be in no one’s interest.
As – particularly at a time of growing global economic uncertainty – we need more cooperation, not less!
South Africa and Germany, like many other countries, are facing economic headwinds.
The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East and the disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea have also placed a considerable strain on our economies.
We know that for the African continent three “F” stand out: Fuel. Food. Fertiliser.
For South Africa and Germany its also a major obstacle for exports to the Gulf region.
I am firmly convinced that no country will be in a position to overcome challenges like these simply by making domestic adjustments.
Today, foreign policy and domestic policy are inextricably linked.
And our bilateral cooperation serves as the perfect example.
I already touched upon the mutually beneficial nature of the relationship between Germany and South Africa.
We opened the European market to South Africa and the Southern African Development Community.
In turn, South Africa has provided German businesses with access to markets across Southern Africa.
Both our countries have benefitted from that considerably.
But just because we work so closely together doesn’t mean we have to agree on everything.
Neither do we have to share all identical values nor hold the same political positions on every issue.
Of course not!
And I am fully aware that some of Germany’s policies are questioned here in South Africa.
Having said this, I see it as a symbol of true friendship and trust that we can see the world also through the eyes of the other.
In some disputed matters we can agree to disagree.
And at the same time keep on working together.
What matters is that we are committed to the same international principles.
That we treat each other, our respective history and political context and national interests with respect and dignity.
And to do it in a responsible way!
Such “responsibility” in foreign affairs has many different readings.
It goes without saying that as Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany, it is my foremost responsibility to safeguard the interests of my country.
Anything else would be a misunderstanding of my office.
But pursuing our national interests does not mean acting without regard for others.
Is it not in our interest when conflicts are resolved peacefully?
Is it not in our interest when the causes of forced displacement are addressed?
Is it not in our interest when our friends and partners become more prosperous and more resilient?
National interests and international responsibility are not mutually exclusive.
On the contrary, in most cases they reinforce one another.
I say this as someone who was raised in the Christian faith and whose view of humanity has been shaped by the Christian values shared by many of you.
Maybe this is why a core belief of the Ubuntu philosophy expressed in the words Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu resonates so much with me:
A person is a person through other people, or, as it is often understood:
I am because we are!
I have come to understand that this idea profoundly shapes the way people in Southern Africa see the world and act in it.
It shapes the way people relate to one another.
It reflects the respect we owe one another because we recognise that our lives are deeply interconnected.
And it is precisely this spirit of respect, of genuine interest in one another, that must also guide partnerships between nations.
Like the one between South Africa and Germany.
Thank you!
– ENDS –
This address was delivered during a high-level dialogue co-hosted by SAIIA and the German Embassy in Pretoria on 23 July 2026.
