White victimhood to G20: What’s behind Trump’s attacks on South Africa?
White victimhood to G20: What’s behind Trump’s attacks on South Africa?
Trump’s freeze on aid to South Africa caps years of growing tension over everything from Russia and China to Israel.
Author: Al Jazeera Staff
Published on: 10/02/2025 | 00:00:00
AI Summary:
President Donald Trump signed an executive order freezing aid to South Africa. He cited a recent land expropriation law passed by the country that the American leader and his allies claim discriminates against white farmers. But the aid block is only the culmination of a series of pressure points between the US and South Africa that have now exploded under Trump. South Africa is hosting a meeting of the foreign ministers of the group on February 20-21. South Africa’s government has insisted there has been no forcible confiscation of land. The South African law bars the arbitrary takeover of land and provides for compensation in most cases. South Africa’s minority white community controls more than 70 percent of the country’s land. Yet white South African farmers have long been an obsession with Trump. In 2018, during his first term in office, Trump alleged that South Africa had witnessed “large-scale killings” of white farmers. The ICJ has passed interim orders against Israel, while many countries have joined South Africa’s case. The US-South Africa Bilateral Relations Review Act, introduced in the US House almost exactly a year ago on February 6, 2024, accused South Africa of siding with malign actors. In Washington, Pandor tried to meet members of Congress and spoke to think tanks. 2024 bill accuses South Africa of pursuing “closer ties with the People’s Republic of China” and the Russian Federation. In May 2023, the US ambassador to South Africa accused the country of supplying weapons to Russia for its war against Ukraine through a cargo ship that docked secretly at a naval base near Cape Town. An investigation by the South African government concluded in September 2023 that “no evidence” was found. About 600 US businesses operate in the country. South Africa is also a critical strategic partner for the US. China is by far South Africa’s largest trading partner.
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