South Africa's Hegemony and Its Quiet Diplomacy

Abstract

This chapter assesses South Africa's quiet diplomacy in Zimbabwe during the tenure of Thabo Mbeki as president. After the colonial era, hegemonic powers have always been considered critical role-players within their specific continent or regions because of their robust economies, military might, and soft power credentials, abuse, especially from the ruling Zimbabwean African National Union (ZANU – PF) regime. Instead of acting on its neighbour, the Mbeki regime opted for the quiet diplomacy route. With South Africa entering the African political landscape after the apartheid era and becoming a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), many considered it the driving force regarding the political landscape in Africa, particularly Southern Africa. While the Mandela administration achieved some of this, many eyebrows were raised throughout Mbeki's era, particularly in his quiet diplomacy towards Zimbabwe.