Former Deputy Minister of International Relations and former Western Cape ANC chairperson Marius Fransman has voiced his concerns about Rheinmetall and its open supply of arms to Ukraine, and Israel.
This follows revelations by NGO Open Secrets that despite South Africa’s ban on arms exports to Ukraine, and Israel, locally, Rheinmetall’s Boksburg firm produces artillery shells and was never flagged until 2024.
The South African-based defence firm has been involved in selling weaponry suspected of fuelling the crisis linked to human rights violation.
Rheinmetall generates approximately 90% of its revenue from exports to conflict areas such as Ukraine and Israel, prompting concerns about whether such practices are in harmony with South Africa’s self-proclaimed ethical standards in international relations.
For many years, South Africa’s Rheinmetall factory produced artillery shells. But things began to heat up in mid-2024, when reports emerged that these shells were going where they shouldn’t.
Rheinmetall is now accused of using its global network to bypass South Africa’s strict export controls: ammunition from the factory is officially shipped to Germany or other countries, but is then redirected to conflict zones.
Rheinmetall and Ukraine, represented by the Minister for Strategic Industries, Oleksandr Kamyshin, signed a memorandum of understanding to expand their arms cooperation in Berlin last year.
This has also prompted experts to ask Parliament’s portfolio Committee on Defence to look into the activities of Rheinmetall in South Africa given that 80% of the output of the South African defence industry (SADI) is exported.
The Rheinmetal factory is not an innocent baby in the forest of the international arms trade. They know very well that these countries are not the final destination, but are the conduits (bridges) that transfer these weapons to war mongering countries such as Ukraine and apartheid Israel.
To preserve former President Nelson Mandela’s dream of a peaceful world, experts have urged urgent interventions in South Africa’s arms trade to ensure that it aligns with international standards and protect human rights.
According to Chief Executive of the SA Aerospace, Maritime, and Defence Export Council Sandile Ndlovu, the South Africa’s defence industry is unique on the African continent, possessing capabilities across all warfare domains.
Rheinmetall signed a contract with the German government to supply Germany with €8.5 billion ($9.2 billion) of 155mm ammunition—a type of munition that is a major South African export. Evidently, items procured from South Africa are being purchased to help replenish German and other stockpiles.
Rheinmetall has a South African subsidiary, Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM), which is subject to South Africa’s export laws, was In July 2024, was running 24-hour-a-day shifts at its plants across South Africa and is investing hundreds of millions of rands in their expansion in order to keep up with the massive global demand for artillery ammunition. It is increasing capacity from 100 000 to 150 000 shells a year.
Activists have been campaigning against South African businesses that support trade or donate to Israel either directly through the business or through personal donations of business owners, and they too have expressed concern about lack of oversight.
Abeedah Adams, a member of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), said that there is “secrecy” around whether South African arms end up in Israel “I know from my limited experience even when we try to monitor arms companies, that getting that kind of information is very difficult. I don’t think that we are complying and monitoring for example who’s the end user of those weapons,” Adams added.
Adams said that all exports to Israel “fuel genocide,” making the campaign to boycott, divest, and sanction Israel necessary to prevent Israel from using South African goods to aid genocide against Palestinians.
A Senior Researcher at the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection Na’eem Jeenah said failure to track where South African weapons are used is troubling.
Meanwhile, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) parliamentarian and member of the portfolio committee on Defence Carl Niehaus, told the publication that parliament had the responsibility to ask Rheinmetall Denel Munition where these large amounts of ammunition were taken.
“It is the responsibility of the joint standing committee on Defence and also on the portfolio of defence and military veterans to raise these issues and this would be on the ambit of our oversight task that we have.
“I have also written a letter to the joint standing committee, where I requested that we need to get the necessary information from the directorate of arms control and also from NCACC,” Niehaus revealed.
He further stated that should it be found that the arms that were manufactured in the country ended up in the war conflicted zone said that would be against the law adding that a serious explanation must be provided by the NCACC as to how the arms would fall in such situations.
The EFF Member of Parliament said Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM), South Africa, was implicated in exporting arms to conflict zones, and countries that violate human rights.
“This company (RDM) was established as far back as 2008, when the then Minister of Defence Mosiuoa (Terror) Lekota, signed off on an illegal agreement allowing Rheinmettall AG to have a majority shareholding of 51%, with the SA SOE Denel having 49% of the shareholding.
Fransman questioned Rheinmetall, a joint venture that reportedly sources South African-produced weapons to Ukraine and Israel, raising questions regarding the country’s compliance with national regulations.
“I doubt the NCAC committee has approved such sales, he added, calling for greater accountability in arms trading practices.”
Rheinmetall is now the sole defence contractor capable of supplying the Ukrainian military with large amounts of new medium- and large-calibre ammunition. In addition to 20mm ammunition for the Marder infantry fighting vehicle, Rheinmetall also supplies 35mm ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft gun, 40mm ammunition, 105mm and 120mm tank ammunition as well as Skynex air defence systems.
Rheinmetall also supplies the Ukrainian armed forces with significant quantities of mortar shells and 155mm artillery ammunition.
According to the company, hundreds of thousands of rounds of 155mm artillery ammunition have already been delivered. In December 2023, the German government also placed an order with Rheinmetall to supply tens of thousands of rounds in 2025. In addition to Germany, another NATO member state has commissioned Rheinmetall to supply large quantities of 155mm ammunition for Ukraine.
In February 2024, Rheinmetall and Ukraine declared their intention to produce a six-digit number of 155mm rounds per year in a “Ukrainian Centre of Excellence for Ammunition”. Joint work on this project is already well advanced. Rheinmetall will hold 51 per cent of the shares in the joint venture, with the Ukrainian partner holding 49 per cent. In June 2024, a large-volume framework agreement was concluded with the German government, the largest in Rheinmetall’s history. Ukraine will also participate in this.
Political analyst Bayethe Msimang said it is important for South Africa to defend its human rights record and foreign policy position.
“South Africa has long positioned itself as a champion of diplomacy and human rights. However, its involvement in the global arms trade raises significant contradictions with its stated values, especially when munitions produced by Rheinmetall Denel Munition are identified in conflict zones,” he said.
