Investigators deliver report on why Iranian warships took part in naval drills off South Africa

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A report into why Iranian warships took part in naval drills off South Africa's coast this year against the instructions of the country's president has been finalized, his office said Tuesday.

The report has been received by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa but will remain confidential while he reviews it, his office said in a statement.

The participation of Iran in drills also involving Chinese and Russian ships off Cape Town in January came at a time of heightened tensions between the United States and Iran, and sparked harsh U.S. criticism of South Africa for allowing Iranian warships to take part.

The drills took place during mass protests in Iran and a crackdown that killed more than 7,000 people. The U.S. and Israel launched military strikes against Iran a month later to start the war.

Ramaphosa ordered the investigation , led by a retired judge, in February, saying there was a “failure to heed the instruction” that Iranian vessels that had already traveled to South Africa for the planned exercises not take part.

The investigation looked at whether Ramaphosa's order was ignored by high-ranking members of the South African armed forces or officials at the Defense Ministry. The president ordered that the investigation report to him and not the Defense Ministry to ensure it was independent, his office said at the time.

South Africa's diplomatic relations with Iran have been a point of criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump and one of the reasons why his administration has accused Africa's biggest economy of having an anti-American foreign policy.

Ramaphosa's instruction that Iran not take part in the weeklong naval drills was seen as an attempt to avoid further diplomatic fallout with the U.S.

The naval drills involving South Africa, China, Russia and Iran were organized under the BRICS bloc , which the U.S. has viewed as a geopolitical and economic challenge to American influence.

BRICS has expanded to 11 member countries in recent years, with Iran among four new members that joined in 2024.

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