Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2001. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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UNited Press International - Tuesday, 12 June 2001
Mbeki arrived with eight government ministers and some 80 businessmen -- an indication that the major focus would be on the booming trade between the two countries that climbed 40 percent last year and is now worth about $7.7 billion.
But, diplomatic sources said, British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government was expected to tread cautiously in any discussions about what London sees as South Africa's soft approach to Zimbabwe and that country's land reform program that has included the invasion of white-owned farms.
A major bone of contention has been Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's insistence that Britain compensate the white farmers for the land they have lost -- a demand London has rejected unconditionally.
A British junior minister last year caused a diplomatic flurry when he openly criticized Mbeki's stance on the political and economic stability that has engulfed Zimbabwe. But both governments insisted the problem had been "smoothed over," sources said.
British diplomats believe South Africa is the key to stability in Southern Africa and they do not want to upset the political apple cart. Sources close to the government said Britain would not press Pretoria to get tough with Harare and that talks this week would be "frank and constructive."
"Africa needs a successful South Africa," said one British diplomat.
Mbeki is scheduled to meet with Blair on Thursday, but another subject they were expected to sidestep is South Africa's problems with HIV and Aids. The South African president has been sharply criticized for questioning the link between the two.
Mbeki , who took over his nation's leadership from Nelson Mandela two years ago, also has drawn fire for refusing to use government funds to pay for drugs for the millions of South Africans suffering from HIV or Aids.
On his visit to Britain, Mbeki will be guest of honor at a state banquet hosted by Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. Mbeki also is scheduled to address members of both houses of Parliament at Westminster.
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