'Leave that stuff and fix SA' — Here's what Mzansi is saying about Ramaphosa and Zelenskyy's phone call

President Cyril Ramaphosa's long-awaited phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was met with mixed responses online.

Ramaphosa confirmed the call via Twitter on Thursday, saying he discussed the “conflict” between Ukraine and Russia, lives lost since it started earlier this year and its effect on the global community. 

Some questioned what the implications of Ramaphosa's call would be, while others said the president needed to focus on domestic issues such as load-shedding and shoddy service delivery.

Others said the call between the two leaders was long overdue.

Earlier this month, SA abstained from voting in favour of suspending Russia's membership in the UN Human Rights Council over its invasion of Ukraine, a decision condemned by some politicians and members of the public who said SA should have voted in favour of the resolution. 

The department of international relations and co-operation said SA's stance was that the two countries need to resolve their differences through mediation and dialogue.

A total of 24 countries voted against the resolution, 58, including SA, abstained and 93 countries voted in favour of the resolution. 

Weeks later, Ramaphosa said the leaders discussed the effect of the war on the global community.

Zelenskyy was first to confirm the call on Wednesday, saying the two leaders discussed Ukraine's resistance to Russia's invasion, the threat of a global food crisis and deepening relations with SA and co-operation within international organisations.

Here are some of reactions to the call: 

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