Defense Intelligence agents disrupted arms supply from South Africa to Russia on a ship, media reports
7.06.2025 - 12:07
The Main Intelligence Directorate has conducted a number of operations in South Africa in recent years to prevent the supply of weapons to Russia.
According to The Washington Post, citing sources in the Ukrainian intelligence services, in December 2022, GUR agents discovered that the Russian cargo ship Lady R had docked at the Simonstown naval base near Cape Town, where it was supposed to receive a shipment of weapons.
The Ukrainian side passed this information on to the United States, after which in May 2023 the US ambassador to South Africa made a public protest.
The publication also reported that in August 2023 the Ukrainian side strongly opposed the entry of the Russian training ship Smolny into the port of Cape Town. According to the publication’s sources, some Defense Intelligence officers even considered the possibility of attacking the ship, but refrained from implementing this plan.
Earlier, USM reported that South Africa denied selling weapons to the Russians.
