It said the visits were necessary to advance the global agenda.
“The office of the deputy president wishes to reiterate Mashatile undertakes all international working visits not in his personal capacity but on behalf of the government as delegated by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“Moreover, the most these strategic international visits are aimed at strengthening existing bilateral, political, economic and diplomatic relations between SA and visited countries,” Mashatile’s office said.
His office reiterated the Japan visit was of the same importance.
“The Japan working visit achieved several key objectives, including representing the first high-level engagement between SA and Japan in the past 10 years, signalling an acknowledgment and appreciation for the long-standing relationship between the two countries based on a wide area of cooperation not limited to trade and investment.
“The visit was beneficial in terms of SA’s African Agenda, the confluence of SA’s G20 chairship and Japan’s hosting of the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in August, presenting a unique opportunity for SA to communicate its own and the continent’s position and priorities to Japan and the expected support and role Japan could play in this regard.”
TimesLIVE
AloJapan.com