Cyril Ramaphosa shrugs off possible US invasion of South Africa

President Cyril Ramaphosa has shrugged off the possibility of a United States (US) invasion of South Africa.

This follows Donald Trump’s instruction to US special forces for a military operation in Venezuela that saw the capture of its disputed President, Nicolás Maduro.

Maduro is under indictment in the US for numerous alleged serious crimes, including drug trafficking.

In the aftermath, several countries, including South Africa, condemned the actions. Several high-ranking South African government officials, including Ramaphosa, have called for the release of Maduro.

All of this comes at a time when Pretoria’s relationship with Washington is at its lowest point in democratic South African history, with the US having boycotted South Africa’s hosting of the 2025 G20 Summit.

Since the relationship is on the ropes, some have questioned if the surprise US strike could become a reality for South Africa.

However, Ramaphosa does not believe that these tensions will trigger the US to take similar action against South Africa as it did against Venezuela.

“We are not worried about an invasion of South Africa [by the United States]. Not at all,” Ramaphosa told eNCA on 6 January.

“We follow the Madiba doctrine, which is that there is no problem without a solution. The best way to deal with problems is when parties sit down together.”

“It was with this doctrine that Nelson Mandela led us through the nightmare that was apartheid,” he added.

Before the attack on Venezuela, the United States alleged that Maduro was the head of the Cartel de los Soles, a narco-terror organisation which it claimed had taken control of the country.

Maduro became president of Venezuela following Hugo Chavez’s death in 2013 and declared victory in a presidential election in 2018 and 2024 – something that has been widely disputed.

Since 2019, more than 50 countries, including the United States, have refused to recognize Maduro as Venezuela’s head of state.

The US said that Maduro allegedly led the Cartel of the Suns, collaborating with Colombia’s FARC to traffic multi-ton cocaine shipments, supply weapons, and run a narco-terror network.

Charged by US prosecutors in 2020, he faced a record $50 million reward after the cartel was designated a global terrorist organisation in 2025.

Critics, however, have argued that the move has more to do with the Venezuelan oil supply, with the US President announcing $2 billion worth of oil being transferred to the country post the operation.

Tensions on the rise

South Africa and the US have seen tensions escalate since Trump returned to office earlier this year.

The South African government has consistently denied accusations from the US, including the administration pushing the notion of a genocide against the Afrikaans population.

The most recent fallout between the two nations came following the G20 summit held in Johannesburg.

After South Africa had handed over the G20 presidency to the United States, Trump announced that South Africa would not be receiving an invitation to the 2026 summit and would be replaced by Poland.

Ramaphosa said that South Africa would “take a commercial break” from the G20 while US President Donald Trump leads the forum.

Despite these tensions, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, has argued that South Africa must ‘continue to stand by its principles’.

Following Maduro’s capture, South Africa condemned the military operation, with its Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) arguing that these actions “manifest a violation of the Charter of the United Nations”.

Lamola argues that tensions will not cause South Africa to bite its tongue in fear of antagonising the United States and deepening the rift between the two countries.

“Obviously, it’s unpredictable with us, but South Africa has to continue to stand on the side of principle,” Lamola said at an ANC event in Rustenburg on 5 January.

“International solidarity and collective action are what have brought stability to the world since the Second World War. We can’t be back in a period after the First World War, where there were no rules-based international law.”