Pretoria - Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe will next week travel to London to attend the memorial service for the late former President Nelson Mandela at Westminster Abbey.
The Deputy President’s visit to the UK is in honour of an invitation extended by the British Government to the South African Government to attend “A Service of Thanksgiving to Celebrate the Life and Work of Nelson Mandela”.
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) on Thursday said the service beared testimony to the special relationship between South Africa and the UK, and to the ties that Nelson Mandela had with the Royal Family and the people of the UK.
“South Africa and the UK’s deep historic relations have positively impacted on cooperation in a broad spectrum of areas,” spokesperson Clayson Monyela said.
These include trade, investment, tourism, culture, education and people-to-people contact.
The Deputy President will be accompanied by International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and senior government officials.
Britain’s Prince Harry and Prime Minister David Cameron will be among the expected 1 800 people at the service. – SAnews.gov.za
