The Russian Ministry of Transport has denied plans for direct flights by Russian carriers between Russia and South Africa, according to the state-owned news agency TASS.

"There are currently no plans to operate direct flights between Russia and Malaysia, Russia and South Africa, as well as Russia and Ethiopia by Russian carriers. Between Russia and Ethiopia, flights on the Addis Ababa International - Moscow route are operated by Ethiopian Airlines three times a week," the ministry said. Ethiopian Airlines also serves Johannesburg and Cape Town from Addis Ababa.

Earlier, the head of the Federal Air Transport Agency, Alexander Neradko, reported that Russia could open flights with Myanmar, Mongolia, South Korea, South Africa, Algeria, Saudi Arabia and a number of other countries this year.

In January, ch-aviation reported that South Africa was talking to Russia's Nordwind Airlines (N4, Moscow Sheremetyevo) about direct flights between Moscow Sheremetyevo and Johannesburg O.R. Tambo, even though the carrier is subject to US and European sanctions invoked due to Russia's war on Ukraine, meaning it cannot legally fly to South Africa under international aviation safety regulations.

South Africa's relationship with Russia is under the international spotlight following US allegations that the African National Congress (ANC) government has provided weapons to Russia for its war on Ukraine. US ambassador Reuben Brigety claims South African arms and ammunition were loaded at night onto a Russian merchant vessel at the Simon’s Town naval base near Cape Town in December 2022. South African president Cyril Ramaphosa said the matter was being investigated before Brigety went public, but found “no evidence” of "an approved arms sale" to Russia. The US allegations have severely impacted the South African economy as spooked investors - already concerned about rolling power cuts - sold off South African rands and bonds last week, resulting in the currency falling to ZAR19.3 rand against the US dollar, down by 2.4%.

South Africa has claimed a non-aligned political stance on the Ukraine war due to its historical relationship with the former Soviet Union supporting the ANC and training its armed wing Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) during its guerrilla war against the former apartheid regime. South Africa held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in January and allowed Russian and Chinese warships to perform joint naval drills off its coast in February. Its stance on Russia also presents a conundrum over the planned attendance of Russian President Vladimir Putin at a BRICS summit in South Africa in August despite an active warrant for his arrest on war crimes issued by the International Criminal Court.