On the 21st, U.S. President Trump, during a meeting with visiting South African President Ramaphosa at the White House, unexpectedly displayed some videos and clippings, accusing South Africa of experiencing a "genocide against whites." Ramaphosa immediately denied this, arguing that Trump's claims of white South Africans fleeing violence and "racist" laws do not hold water.
In what American media called an "ambush" meeting, Trump's sudden actions shocked Ramaphosa, who had hoped to use this visit to improve bilateral relations. The meeting initially had a friendly atmosphere, but when a journalist asked Trump if he believed there was no "genocide of whites" in South Africa, Trump instructed his staff to turn off the lights and play the video. The video featured the leader of a radical South African opposition party, Malema, shouting "Kill the farmer."
Trump stated: "It's a very sad situation, and we have thousands of stories and documentaries to prove it."
Ramaphosa responded that in South Africa, all races are affected by violent incidents, with blacks being the most affected.
He stated that such remarks do not represent the government's stance and emphasized that the South African government firmly opposes any form of hate incitement.
He said: "We are a multi-party democratic society that allows freedom of speech, but this does not mean the government endorses such language."
Analysts outside noted that Trump specifically played the video in the Oval Office, clearly prepared for the issue.
This year, relations between South Africa and the United States have been tense. In February, Trump criticized South Africa's newly published "Expropriation Bill," accusing the South African government of "confiscating land" and constituting "racial discrimination" against white South Africans, and issued an executive order to cut aid to South Africa. In March, South African Ambassador to the U.S., Rasool, was expelled by the U.S. for saying at a seminar that Trump was leading a global white supremacy movement. On May 20th, U.S. Secretary of State Rubio noted at a Senate hearing that the U.S. chose not to participate in this year's G20 meeting hosted by South Africa, whether at the foreign minister level or the presidential level, because South Africa consistently disagrees with U.S. policy.
In February, South Africa's Department of International Relations and Cooperation issued a statement saying that the underlying premise of the U.S. executive order concerning South Africa was "factually incorrect" and ignores the painful history of colonialism and apartheid in South Africa. South Africa expressed concern about political propaganda campaigns aimed at distorting the country and spreading false information. It is disappointing that such a narrative seems to have been endorsed by U.S. policymakers.