Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky will visit South Africa on April 10, the African country's presidency said Friday.

"President Zelensky will be visiting South Africa on the 10th of April," spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told AFP.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa last month said he would invite his Ukrainian counterpart to discuss an "inclusive peace process" to end the Russia-Ukraine war.

‘Political dialogue’

“The purpose is the enhancement of political dialogue. This will be the first visit of Ukrainian president to South Africa since the re-establishment of Ukraine’s independence," Ukraine’s ambassador to South Africa Liubov Abravitova told South African public broadcaster SABC News.

The delegation's composition is still under discussion but is expected to align with South Africa's G20 presidency goals.

“We are looking forward for launching the bilateral multi-sectoral dialogue and co-operations. We yet have to discuss what the composition of delegation will be, but we’re pretty much sure that it will reflect the goals of South African presidency in G20,” Abravitova adds.

The visit comes as Zelenskyy continues to engage with global leaders, having previously garnered international attention for his interactions with US President Donald Trump.

US-Russia talks

South Africa made the invitation came at a time of heavy criticism of moves by Russia and the United States to negotiate an end to the war through talks where neither Ukraine nor its European allies were invited.

While South Africa has sought to display neutrality in the war between Russia and Ukraine, it has been accused of leaning towards Moscow.