Trump threatens to cut US aid to South Africa over land reform claims “`

JOHANNESBURG – President Donald Trump’s threat to halt all U.S. foreign aid to South Africa, citing alleged land confiscation and human rights abuses, has drawn sharp criticism. 

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa refuted Trump’s claims, stating that no land has been confiscated and expressing willingness to discuss land reform with the U.S. administration. 

Last week, Ramaphosa signed a bill allowing land expropriation for public purposes with just and equitable compensation, although no such expropriations have yet occurred, according to sources.

 

Trump, on his Truth Social platform, denounced South Africa’s actions as a “massive human rights violation,” vowing to cut off funding pending a full investigation. He reiterated these comments to the press at Joint Base Andrews.

Pieter du Toit of News 24, commenting on X, suggested Trump’s statements were uninformed. 

This follows reported friction between Elon Musk and the South African government over Musk’s Starlink expansion plans in the country.

On X, Trump questioned South Africa’s ownership laws, prompting analyst Frans Cronje to suggest Trump’s comments might relate to farm killings in South Africa.

“President Trump’s recent comments on land seizures in South Africa cannot be divorced from his past comments on violent attacks directed at the country’s farmers. Whilst these comments have often been dismissed as false, the latest South African data suggests that the country’s commercial farmers are six times more likely to be violently attacked in their homes than is the case for the general population.” 

Cronje speculated about potential underlying motives, including the possibility that the new legislation could impact American investors. He noted that, while mass seizures haven’t occurred previously due to a lack of legal mechanisms, the newly signed bill changes that situation.

“The comments around property rights in South Africa must be read against broader and bipartisan US concern at developments in South Africa. In 2024 the US/South Africa Bilateral Relations Review Act was introduced (in Congress) amid concerns that the South African government’s relationships with Iran, Russia, and China threatened US national security interests.”

Cronje further highlighted South Africa’s support for the Hague Group, which counters a U.S. act imposing sanctions on countries using international courts to threaten U.S. interests. This, he added, is against a backdrop of South Africa’s past use of international courts against Israel.

Ramaphosa downplayed the significance of U.S. aid outside of PEPFAR, which accounts for 17% of South Africa’s HIV/AIDS program.

Analyst Justice Malala predicted significant disruptions to South Africa-U.S. relations under the Trump administration.

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