In a statement, Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe did not have the capacity to represent Africa in helping quell the ongoing conflicts on the continent.
The statement is telling, considering that Zimbabwe is currently chair of the peacekeeping wing of the AU, expected to play a role in whatever military outcome in Libya and the Horn of Africa. Some members of the armed forces said this is an open admission the country's forces are not battle-ready.
President Robert Mugabe has for long dismissed reports that the country's army can no fight any of the regional enemies that he is creating.
The move by Zimbabwe is also seen as an attempt to quash debate over the country's suitability in peacekeeping missions following the killing of civilians in the bloody aftermath of the 2008 election defeat of Robert Mugabe by Morgan Tsvangirai.
The Zimbabwean army has courted controversy in international military circles by declaring that it was aligned to Mugabe and Zanu (PF), in violation of the constitution, which states that military officers must be non-partisan.
There are also global calls for an investigation into the Gukurahundi massacre by the army of more than 20 000 civilians in Matabeleland and Midlands provinces.
Efforts to get Mnangagwa to comment were unsuccessful as he answered the phone several times but was on a bad line. The Zimbabwean army is in a bad state, according to defence analysts.
Last week, the Air Force showed Mugabe antiquated aircraft, including skeletons of the formerly flagship Hawk planes from Britain. Most equipment has fallen into disrepair following an arms embargo on Zimbabwe by the West in 2001.
Post published in: News