President Thabo Mbeki early on Thursday morning expressed his regret that the war in Iraq had started, presidential spokesman Bheki Khumalo said.
The President would have preferred the matter to dealt with by the United Nations rather, Khumalo said.
He said the war ”is a blow to multilateralism”.
The New National Party foreign affairs spokesman Dr Boy Geldenhuys said he was watching events as they unfolded on television.
He said the NNP had from the very start believed the US was going to attack unilaterally.
”It is very important for South Africa to stay neutral. Humanitarian aids must be encouraged but South Africa should at all cost not be seen to support Saddam Hussein,” he said.
He said the NNP hope the war would be over quickly, even though it seemed unlikely.
”We hope the targets will be the military targets and not civilians.”
Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said on behalf of the government that war was not a solution to the world’s problems.
Mamoepa said the government regretted the start of the war which set an ”unfortunate precedent” in dealing with world affairs.
”More than ever before the multilateral system should be used in our response to global challenges, and we call on the United Nations to assert its authority to ensure that military action is conducted within the rules of international humanitarian law.”
Mamoepa said that at the time war broke out progress was being made in removing weapons of mass destruction from Iraq though the United Nations inspection team.
”It is also regrettable that the war is occurring outside the mandate of the United Nations Security Council”.
Mamoepa said Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad had indicated on Wednesday that the challenge for both the South African government and civil society was to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Iraq.
Mamoepa declined to comment on the possibility that South Africans might go to the Gulf help fight in Iraq.
Democratic Alliance leader Tony Leon called on South Africa to distance itself from the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein and to prepare to offer such humanitarian assistance as it was able to.
”War is a terrible thing and we regret the crisis couldn’t be solved by diplomatic means.”
He also said South Africa should be prepared to assist in the building of a democratic Iraq once the conflict ended. – Sapa