South Africa confronts American hostility with resilience
Analysis
PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa’s diplomacy is charting a delicate course between East and West as South Africa finds itself in Washington’s crosshairs.
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PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa’s diplomacy is charting a delicate course between East and West as South Africa finds itself in Washington’s crosshairs.
On August 20, 2025, Ramaphosa held phone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, discussing international issues and reaffirming commitments to strengthen cooperation.
With Putin, Ramaphosa pledged to deepen a comprehensive strategic partnership and expand joint work in multilateral forums. Lula struck similar notes, highlighting BRICS unity and the importance of resisting economic coercion.
These exchanges underscored Pretoria’s pivot toward the Global South at a time when ties with the United States are rapidly unravelling.In early August, US President Donald Trump imposed 30% tariffs on South African exports, abruptly ending duty-free access under Agoa. South Africa became the only sub-Saharan nation targeted with such steep penalties. The US market has been South Africa’s second-largest export destination, critical for platinum, automobiles, and citrus.
The tariffs rattled industries and were widely seen as retaliation for Pretoria’s independent line in global politics. Trump has long bristled at Ramaphosa’s government, accusing it of mistreating the white minority and cosying up to US rivals. With this measure, relations between the two countries sank to their lowest point in decades.
The collapse in goodwill was foreshadowed in May, when Trump staged a theatrical Oval Office encounter. Waving around photographs and video clips, he tried to convince Ramaphosa that a “white genocide” was unfolding in South Africa.
The images, however, turned out to be fabrications — one was even from Congo. Ramaphosa calmly dismissed the narrative, noting that while violent crime is a real challenge, there is no racial extermination campaign against farmers, and his government condemns extremist rhetoric. Land reform, he stressed, is being pursued lawfully. For Trump, facts mattered less than the spectacle.
The performance was designed for a domestic audience, feeding right-wing conspiracy theories about South Africa while reinforcing his hardline image. South Africa became a convenient prop in Trump’s culture war at home, even if it came at the expense of diplomacy abroad.
If the “white farmer” stunt embarrassed Pretoria, South Africa’s decision to take Israel to the International Court of Justice enraged Washington. By accusing Israel of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Pretoria crossed a line that US leaders considered untouchable. For decades, Washington has shielded Israel from international accountability.
South Africa’s move flipped the script: genocide was no longer a charge levelled only at America’s adversaries but at one of its closest allies. By doing so, Pretoria punctured the myth of the US’s moral monopoly. For Washington, this was unforgivable. Under Trump, indignation hardened into open hostility.
The US response has been broad. The tariffs hurt key exporters, though analysts caution that the damage is manageable. The US accounts for about 10% of South Africa’s exports, only 2.5% of GDP. Pretoria’s domestic market and its ties with Europe, China, and other BRICS members provide cushions.
Yet for carmakers and fruit farmers who depend on U.S. sales, the blow is serious. Ramaphosa’s government has pledged relief measures, but uncertainty weighs heavily. More troubling is the sudden disappearance of US development aid. Programmes funded through USAID and Pepfar that once supported HIV/Aids treatment, vaccine trials, and public health campaigns have been gutted.
Clinics are reporting medicine shortages, trials have stalled, and thousands of health workers have been forced out of jobs. For a country still home to the world’s largest HIV-positive population, the timing is dire. Pretoria condemned the aid cuts as cruel politicisation of humanitarian support, while critics noted that Washington’s punishment hurts ordinary South Africans most.
Diplomatic tensions have followed the same trajectory. US officials increasingly chastise Pretoria for everything from land reform to naval drills with Russia and China. When the US ambassador alleged that South Africa secretly supplied weapons to Moscow, the government launched an inquiry that found no evidence and demanded respect for its sovereignty.
Talk of declaring the ambassador persona non grata circulated in Pretoria, though officials stopped short. The message was clear: South Africa will not be lectured. Neutrality on Ukraine, friendship with BRICS partners, and an independent foreign policy are not negotiable. Washington sees this as betrayal; Pretoria views it as sovereignty.
In this storm, Ramaphosa has leaned further into BRICS and Global South solidarity. The August calls with Putin and Lula were part of this broader recalibration. South Africa has accelerated trade discussions with China, explored deeper energy cooperation with Russia, and strengthened African and Middle Eastern ties.
What Washington calls “cosying up to adversaries”, Pretoria describes as diversification in a multipolar world. The logic is clear: if the U.S. turns hostile, South Africa cannot afford dependence on its goodwill. By broadening its partnerships, Pretoria builds resilience.
Few expect Trump’s hostility to ease before the end of his term. Sanctions and diplomatic snubs are likely to continue, reinforced by the domestic appeal they hold for Trump’s base. South Africa must therefore prepare for sustained pressure.
Its strategy will be to expand economic partnerships, stabilise industries hit by tariffs, and deepen multilateral ties. In doing so, Pretoria signals that it cannot be bullied back into line.
This standoff is bigger than trade disputes or political theatre. It reflects a shifting global order in which middle powers like South Africa refuse to be trapped in a single superpower’s orbit. The US’s aggressive posture shows the lengths it will go to preserve dominance, even against democracies it once praised.
But South Africa’s resolve demonstrates something equally important: that sovereignty, solidarity, and multipolar engagement are more than slogans—they are tools of survival in a turbulent world. The coming years will test this balance, but Pretoria has already made its choice.
* Dr Manuel Godsin is a writer and researcher at the International Centre for Political and Strategic Studies. He obtained a doctorate in international relations and strategic affairs from the University of Bergen in Norway and a Master’s Degree in International Crisis Management from the University of Oslo.
** The views expressed do not reflect those of the Sunday Independent, Independent Media, or IOL.