‘We Want a Meaningful Deal’: South African President in Overture to Trump Following Aid Cut

Latest Developments

South African President Seeks Deal With Trump: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has stated that he wants to “do a deal” with U.S. President Donald Trump after the United States cut aid to his country earlier in February. “We want to go and do a meaningful deal with the United States on a whole range of issues,” Ramaphosa said at a February 27 conference in Johannesburg organized by the U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs. Ramaphosa added that he is “very positively inclined to promote a good relationship with President Trump.”
Trump Cites ICJ Case Against Israel in Executive Order Cutting Aid: Ramaphosa’s comments came after Trump issued an executive order on February 7 cutting aid to South Africa. The order criticized land expropriation laws passed by the Ramaphosa government as well as the country’s “aggressive positions towards the United States and its allies, including accusing Israel of genocide in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).” South Africa called Trump’s executive order a “campaign of misinformation and propaganda.”
Ramaphosa and the Hague Group Back ICJ Case: Just two days prior to his overture to Trump,Ramaphosa published, together with Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, a scathing op-ed reaffirming South Africa’s stance that Israel is “systematically” violating “international law in Gaza.” Hamas in early February praised a newly formed bloc of anti-Israel countries led by South Africa calling itself “The Hague Group,” which seeks to coordinate legal, diplomatic, and economic measures against perceived Israeli violations of international law. The coalition includes South Africa, Cuba, Malaysia, Namibia, Colombia, Bolivia, Senegal, Honduras, and Belize, with six of these countries either having joined or announcing their intentions to join South Africa’s case against Israel at the ICJ, accusing the Jewish state of committing genocide in its war against Hamas.

FDD Expert Response

“South Africa is trying to play both sides. That may have worked in years past, but President Trump is telling the ruling African National Congress that its fight against Israel, support for Hamas, and alignment with America’s adversaries is no longer going to be tolerated. South Africa must choose. Does it want to reset its foreign policy, renew its relationship with the United States, and, in turn, develop sustainable value chains that support South Africans, or does it want to entrench itself further in the orbit of America’s enemies?” — Max Meizlish, Senior Research Analyst

“Cosmetic changes will not do. Pretoria needs to do a 180 on its Israel policy. South Africa hasn’t just been on the wrong side of this — it’s been Hamas’s lawyer, leading the charge to cast the victims of the October 7 murder and rape rampage as war criminals. Retracting its ICJ case would be a good start to repairing the damage.” — David May, FDD Research Manager and Senior Research Analyst

“For several years now, South Africa has been an established ally of Hamas and an obsessive promoter of the Palestinian cause, going so far as to franchise the word ‘apartheid’ as a descriptor for Israel, despite the fact that Israeli Arab citizens enjoy the same civil and political rights as Israeli Jews. The Trump administration should not be seduced by Ramaphosa’s overture. As long as South Africa wages lawfare against Israel, a tactic that can easily be used against the armed forces of the United States as well, his request for a meeting with Trump should be rejected.” — Ben Cohen, FDD Senior Analyst and Rapid Response Director