Namibia Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and e ...

follows a largely independent

foreign policy A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through ...

, with strong affiliations with states that aided the independence struggle, including

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Su ...

and

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

. In Africa, Namibia has been involved in conflicts in neighbouring

Angola , national_anthem = "Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

as well as

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

International organizations

Namibia is a member of 47

international organization An international organization or international organisation (see spelling differences), also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is a stable set of norms and rules meant to govern the behavior of states a ...

s. These are:

United Nations

Hopelong Ushona Ipinge & Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Namibia became the 160th member of the United Nations on 23 April 1990 upon independence.

African Union

With a small army and a fragile economy, the Namibian Government's principal foreign policy concern is developing strengthened ties within the Southern African region. A dynamic member of the

Southern African Development Community The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is an inter-governmental organization headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana. Its goal is to further regional socio-economic cooperation and integration as well as political and security cooper ...

, Namibia is a vocal advocate for greater regional integration.

International disputes

Namibia is involved in several minor international disputes. * Commission established with

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

to resolve small residual disputes along the

Caprivi Strip The Caprivi Strip, also known simply as Caprivi, is a geographic salient protruding from the northeastern corner of Namibia. It is surrounded by Botswana to the south and Angola and Zambia to the north. Namibia, Botswana and Zambia meet at a ...

, including the Situngu marshlands along the

Linyanti River The Cuando River (or Kwando in the non-colonial spelling) is a river in south-central Africa flowing through Angola and Namibia's Caprivi Strip and into the Linyanti Swamp on the northern border of Botswana. Below the swamp, the river is called ...

* Botswana residents protest Namibia's planned construction of the

Okavango Okavango may refer to: Geographical features * Okavango River, a river in southwest Africa, which drains into the Okavango Delta * Okavango Delta, a delta in Botswana * Okavango Basin, an endorheic basin that includes the Okavango River and Okav ...

hydroelectric dam on

Popa Falls Popa (''priest'' in Romanian) may refer to: People *Alina Popa (born 1978), Romanian-Swiss, IFBB professional bodybuilder *Anatolie Popa (1896–1920), Moldavian military commander * Celestina Popa (born 1970), Romanian, artistic gymnast *Constanti ...

* Managed dispute with South Africa over the location of the boundary in the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/ Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the nort ...

* Dormant dispute remains where

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...

, and

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

boundaries converge * Angolan rebels and refugees still reside in Namibia

Bilateral relations

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Oceania

Namibia and the Commonwealth of Nations

Namibia has been a

Commonwealth republic The republics in the Commonwealth of Nations are the sovereign states in the organisation with a republican form of government. , 36 out of the 56 member states were republics. Charles III, who is the reigning monarch in the Commonwealth realms ...

since 1990, when

South West Africa South West Africa ( af, Suidwes-Afrika; german: Südwestafrika; nl, Zuidwest-Afrika) was a territory under South African administration from 1915 to 1990, after which it became modern-day Namibia. It bordered Angola ( Portuguese colony before ...

became independent of South Africa.

Notes and references

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Foreign Relations of Namibia Namibia and the Commonwealth of Nations