By A Correspondent| Zambian President Hichilema Hakainde on Thursday boycotted a three-nation wildlife conservation summit in Harare in his continuing diplomatic spat with Zimbabwe’s leader Emmerson Mnangagwa.

Hakainde had been expected to attend the signing ceremony of the Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Zambia Tripartite Transfrontier Conservation Area memorandum of agreement but sent his tourism minister instead.

Mnangagwa and Mozambique’s Filipe Nyusi represented their two countries.

Hichilema has called for mediation between Zambia and Zimbabwe after Mnangagwa, unaware his comments would be made public, told Russian President Vladimir Putin on a trip to Moscow in June that posed a security threat to his country through its growing military links with the United States.

“The Americans,” Mnangagwa told Putin, “are consolidating their power in that country (Zambia), both in terms of security and in terms of financial support to make sure that we feel lonely.”

He asked Putin for support “especially in the area of defence and security as well as food security.”

Zambia said Mnangagwa’s comments were “an unwarranted attack on the country’s sovereignty” and called for “urgent and immediate intervention” by regional countries to defuse the tensions.

The row deepened after Zimbabwe’s disputed elections in August 2023 when a SADC election observation mission headed by Zambian national Nevers Mumba concluded that the polls were not held according to regional and international standards on democratic elections, angering Mnangagwa.