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commerce and trade, but the ulterior goal was undoubtedly to tie the hands of anyfuture ANC-led government with respect to South Africa’s geopolitical position asregional hegemon”. 373 It represented a shift of style (diplomacy instead of coercion)by the National Party government, but the ‘substance’ of regional economichegemony remained in place. 374 It sought to establish South Africa’s role as the preeminentpower in southern Africa. Meanwhile, “(i)n a series of policy documents,the ANC recognized the dramatic changes in the international society, the collapseof its long-time ally, the Soviet Union, and the rise of a new multi-(or uni-)polarinternational order under capitalist socio-economic hegemony and dominatedpolitically by the United States”. 375 Thabo Mbeki, the Head of the ANC’sDepartment of International Affairs, recognising, for the time being, the importanceof ‘world opinion’, pronounced on the country’s future prospects and its context,South Africa will achieve a transition to a non-racial democracy during a periodwhen there is a general universal tendency towards the establishment of politicalsystems whose features include multi-party democracy, respect for individualhuman rights and movement away from centrally planned economies. 376There is agreement by some authors that “an internal ANC consensus has provedto be elusive on issues such as the role which human rights considerations shouldplay in the conduct of external relations”. 377 To complicate matters, the ANC as apolitical party sought to continue its own track of foreign relations, albeit withchanged priorities from the struggle era. Even once in government, it viewed interpartyrelations at the international level as an important means of achieving some ofits international (and party political) objectives. 378This enabled the party tocontinue many of its more controversial relations, especially with leaders such asSuharto, Castro and Qaddafi, keeping them ‘separate’ from questions of nationalforeign policy.373 Evans, “South Africa in Remission”, 255.374 Ibid.375 Döpcke, “Foreign Policy and Political Regime”, 308.376 Thabo Mbeki, “South Africa’s International Relations: Today and Tomorrow”, in FromPariah to Participant: South Africa’s Evolving Foreign Relations 1990-1994, ed., GregMills (Johannesburg: South African Institute of International Affairs, 1994): 203.377 Ibid., 39. Also see Nathan, “Interests, ideas and ideology”.378 ANC, 1997. “Developing a Strategic Perspective”, online.161