Motlanthe condemns Russia's invasion of Ukraine

He says no war solves problems and that it should be condemned.

Motlanthe made the comments while addressing an online discussion hosted by the Centre for Development and Enterprise on Wednesday night.

Russia's military action in Ukraine is now entering its seventh week. 

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Our government's refused to join other countries in condemning Moscow's invasion calling for dialogue instead.

Motlanthe said there were opportunities to intervene and avoid the eventual invasion of Ukraine on 24 February.

He added that this war will be a no-win situation for both countries because Russians are now involved in a war that they didn't approve of.

In that sense, Motlanthe said his take on this is that Russia's invasion of Ukraine should be condemned.

At the same time, he has criticised Fifa for suspending Russia from international soccer, with Motlanthe warning that that blurs the lines when it comes to the separation of sport and politics. 

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Motlanthe's comments come at a time during which the South African government remains steadfast in its position that peaceful negotiations will be the only way to resolve the war.

South Africa's representative at the UN has also refused to join a non-binding resolution that demands Russia withdraws from Ukraine.