U.S President Donald Trump has signed an executive order cutting financial support to South Africa.
Mr. Trump cited concerns over its land expropriation law, its genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and closer ties with Iran.
“The United States cannot support the government of South Africa’s commission of rights violations in its country or its undermining United States foreign policy, which poses national security threats to our Nation, our allies, our African partners, and our interests,” according to an order on Friday at the White House.
The directive targets a new South African law that permits land expropriation without compensation, a policy Trump has criticised, saying: “South Africa is confiscating land” and that “certain classes of people” are being treated “very badly.”
The order also includes a provision for assisting “Afrikaner refugees escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination.”
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa defended the legislation, arguing it does not amount to confiscation.
“The recently adopted Expropriation Act is not a confiscation instrument, but a constitutionally mandated legal process that ensures public access to land in an equitable and just manner,” Ramaphosa said Monday on X.
The US allocated nearly $440 million in aid to South Africa in 2023, according to government data. It remains unclear how much of that assistance will be revoked under Trump’s order.
The move adds further strain to US-South Africa relations, which have been tested by Pretoria’s case at the ICJ accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza.
South Africa-born billionaire Elon Musk, whom Trump has named his “efficiency czar,” has also weighed in, calling South Africa’s policies “openly racist ownership laws” and suggesting white citizens are victims of discrimination.
