Relations between South Africa and
Nigeria have further been strained after the latter recalled its
diplomatic envoy in protest against the latest wave of xenophobia
violence in parts of South Africa.
On Saturday, Nigeria recalled its acting high commissioner to South Africa for consultations on Pretoria's handling of xenophobia attacks on immigrants.
South Africa reacted strongly to the Nigerian move.
"If this action is based on the incidents of attacks on foreign nationals in some parts of our country, it would be curious for a sisterly country to want to exploit such a painful episode for whatever agenda," said Department of International Relations and Cooperation spokesperson Clayson Monyela.
He said the South African government did not blame Nigeria for its handling of the collapse of the Lagos-based Synagogue of All Nations Church building in September last year, in which 84 South Africans died.
Although Pretoria said it remained committed to creating a strong bond with Nigeria, experts said the two countries have a love-and-hate relationship at present and for the foreseeable future.
A lecturer of international relations at Rhodes University, who refused to be named, told Xinhua that the relations had already been strained by the behavior of some South African companies such as MTN, MultiChoice and Woolworths, which were "being blamed of profiting �C three times larger than in South Africa - from Nigerian market."
Enraged Nigerians threatened to close South African businesses operating in their country following the recent xenophobia attacks that killed at least seven people and displaced thousands of foreigners, including Nigerians.
Femmi Okoro, a Nigerian student of international relations at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, noted that this was not the first time that relations between the two countries took a knock.
In 2012, South African officials at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg deported 125 Nigerians because their yellow fever vaccination certificates were believed to have been faked.
"The Nigerian government felt slighted and instead of sulking in the corner, they retaliated by doing some deportation work of their own," Okoro said.
He said that after the unfortunate diplomatic rift, Abuja imposed stricter visa requirements for South Africans.
Nigerian diplomats often complain about negative reports which depict Nigerians in South Africa as drug-traffickers and criminals.
After xenophobic attacks in South Africa left more than 60 people dead and thousands homeless and more repatriated to their home countries in 2008, Nigerian students demanded that South Africans in Nigeria be deported in retaliation of what they termed "genocide" against Nigerians in South Africa.
Relations between Nigeria and SA, two of Africa's largest economies, have been marked by competitive jostling for the first position of the African economy, now being led by Nigeria after the rebasing of its gross domestic product.
A well-respected South African radio personality and analyst, Eusebius McKaiser, took to Facebook after the recall of the Nigerian diplomatic envoy.
The strong response from South Africa "is fully justified in my view," McKaiser said.
"However, it certainly helps neither South Africa nor Nigeria - and definitely not the continent, geopolitically - for diplomatic relations between us to deteriorate," he added.
SA Institute for Security Studies Executive Director, Jackie Cilliers told Xinhua in a telephone interview that "Nigeria as Africa's biggest economy didn't act on behalf of the continent by withdrawing its ambassador."
He cited examples of countries like Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi, which have also expressed their outrages over the attacks on foreigners.
These countries have begun to repatriate their citizens.
"African states have reacted quite strongly to the xenophobic violence in South Africa this time," Cilliers said.
On Saturday, Nigeria recalled its acting high commissioner to South Africa for consultations on Pretoria's handling of xenophobia attacks on immigrants.
South Africa reacted strongly to the Nigerian move.
"If this action is based on the incidents of attacks on foreign nationals in some parts of our country, it would be curious for a sisterly country to want to exploit such a painful episode for whatever agenda," said Department of International Relations and Cooperation spokesperson Clayson Monyela.
He said the South African government did not blame Nigeria for its handling of the collapse of the Lagos-based Synagogue of All Nations Church building in September last year, in which 84 South Africans died.
Although Pretoria said it remained committed to creating a strong bond with Nigeria, experts said the two countries have a love-and-hate relationship at present and for the foreseeable future.
A lecturer of international relations at Rhodes University, who refused to be named, told Xinhua that the relations had already been strained by the behavior of some South African companies such as MTN, MultiChoice and Woolworths, which were "being blamed of profiting �C three times larger than in South Africa - from Nigerian market."
Enraged Nigerians threatened to close South African businesses operating in their country following the recent xenophobia attacks that killed at least seven people and displaced thousands of foreigners, including Nigerians.
Femmi Okoro, a Nigerian student of international relations at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, noted that this was not the first time that relations between the two countries took a knock.
In 2012, South African officials at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg deported 125 Nigerians because their yellow fever vaccination certificates were believed to have been faked.
"The Nigerian government felt slighted and instead of sulking in the corner, they retaliated by doing some deportation work of their own," Okoro said.
He said that after the unfortunate diplomatic rift, Abuja imposed stricter visa requirements for South Africans.
Nigerian diplomats often complain about negative reports which depict Nigerians in South Africa as drug-traffickers and criminals.
After xenophobic attacks in South Africa left more than 60 people dead and thousands homeless and more repatriated to their home countries in 2008, Nigerian students demanded that South Africans in Nigeria be deported in retaliation of what they termed "genocide" against Nigerians in South Africa.
Relations between Nigeria and SA, two of Africa's largest economies, have been marked by competitive jostling for the first position of the African economy, now being led by Nigeria after the rebasing of its gross domestic product.
A well-respected South African radio personality and analyst, Eusebius McKaiser, took to Facebook after the recall of the Nigerian diplomatic envoy.
The strong response from South Africa "is fully justified in my view," McKaiser said.
"However, it certainly helps neither South Africa nor Nigeria - and definitely not the continent, geopolitically - for diplomatic relations between us to deteriorate," he added.
SA Institute for Security Studies Executive Director, Jackie Cilliers told Xinhua in a telephone interview that "Nigeria as Africa's biggest economy didn't act on behalf of the continent by withdrawing its ambassador."
He cited examples of countries like Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi, which have also expressed their outrages over the attacks on foreigners.
These countries have begun to repatriate their citizens.
"African states have reacted quite strongly to the xenophobic violence in South Africa this time," Cilliers said.
