South Africa Eyes Confrontation With Trump Over Growing Ties to China, Russia, Iran

South Africa is testing President Donald Trump’s patience, launching a week-long naval exercise alongside America’s adversaries. China, Russia, Iran, and several other countries in the loosely organized BRICS alliance came together on January 9 in a show of solidarity. Washington is increasingly worried that South Africa’s ruling African National Congress (ANC) party is escalating the country’s alignment with U.S. adversaries.

Iranian naval assets appear to be participating in the exercise — referred to as “Will for Peace 2026” — despite massive anti-regime demonstrations back in Iran and a reported late-breaking South African request for Iran to downgrade its role in the exercise to an observer only, to avoid further antagonizing the United States. Tehran still showed off a retrofitted container ship Shahid Mahdavi,which the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp Navy has used to launch ballistic missiles. The last iteration of this exercise, known as “Mosi II,” occurred without Iran’s participation in February 2023 on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

South Africa’s Ruling Party a Growing Threat to U.S. Interests

The ANC’s actions “signal open hostility toward the United States,” U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch (R-ID) said of the exercise on January 12. The BRICS-linked drill is just the latest data point in a litany of actions South Africa has taken in support of America’s adversaries. On Iran, it follows the controversial August 2025 meeting by South Africa’s military chief where he spoke of strengthening cooperation with top security officials in Tehran. On China, it comes amid recent reports of secret government agreements involving Chinese-funded repairs to various critical South African military infrastructure, as well as a U.S. Justice Department forfeiture action that seized two anti-submarine warfare crew trainers purchased by a South African company for delivery to the Chinese military. And on Russia, the South African government is implicated in several scandals involving U.S.-sanctioned vessels and aircraft tied to the country’s defense sector.

South Africa is not unified on these issues. The ANC governs in a coalition alongside its longtime opposition, the Democratic Alliance (DA), which continues to condemn the ANC for pushing South Africa closer to America’s enemies. DA Spokesperson on International Relations and Cooperation Ryan Smith said on January 11 that the country’s “national defense and foreign policy ministries, which are run by ANC ministers entirely … are leading [South Africa] into a moral and ethical abyss.”

South Africa Faces Growing Sanctions, Commercial Risks

These exercises carry real legal and economic risks for South Africa and its struggling private sector. Companies providing refueling, maintenance, logistics, or other services to Russian or Iranian vessels may face exposure to U.S. and EU sanctions. The exercises are also likely to accelerate broader scrutiny of South Africa’s foreign policy ties in Washington. Bipartisan efforts such as the U.S.-South Africa Bilateral Review Act seek to expand the application of existing sanctions in light of Pretoria’s deepening ties to China, Russia, and Iran. Additionally, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has said that South Africa could be deemed ineligible for participation in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) tariff-free trade program, the renewal of which is currently being debated in Congress.

South Africa Should Be Held Accountable

The ANC is unlikely to deviate from its anti-American posture absent sustained attention from Washington. U.S. sanctions are readymade tools for holding the government in Pretoria accountable, particularly with respect to the country’s growing support for Iran and Russia. Other authorities, such as the Global Magnitsky Act, could also be applied against ANC officials implicated in the many past and ongoing corruption scandals plaguing South Africa. Congress may also seek to ensure that any effort to renew AGOA provides a clear and immediate pathway for excluding countries like South Africa that are increasingly acting contrary to U.S. national interests.

Max Meizlish is a research fellow for the Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP) at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), where Dan Swift is a senior research analyst for economics, finance, and trade. For more analysis from the authors and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow Max on X @maxmeizlish. Follow FDD on X @FDD and @FDD_CEFP. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.