Cyril Ramaphosa playing with fire

Cyril Ramaphosa’s government is playing with fire by ignoring the United States’ conditions to normalise relations between the two countries.

In June 2025, the United States shared its demands with a delegation of Afrikaner leaders who met with senior White House officials.

The delegation included FF+ leader Corné Mulder, Southern African Agri Initiative chairman Theo de Jager, and National Employers’ Association CEO Gerhard Papenfus.

The demands related to farm attacks, land expropriation, BEE, and ‘Kill the Boer’ as preconditions to mend relations with South Africa.

• Farm attacks must be classified as a priority crime, and more resources must be allocated to combat them.
• The utterance ‘Kill the Boer’ must be condemned.
• No land expropriation may take place without fair market compensation.
• American businesses must be exempted from Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) requirements, which are viewed as a trade barrier.
• There must be true non-alignment in international relations.

In March 2026, US Ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III reiterated the need for South Africa to adhere to these conditions.

He extended an olive branch to Ramaphosa’s government, saying the United States wants to significantly increase investment in South Africa.

This included doubling the number of American companies and creating another 250,000 jobs in South Africa.

Bozell added that the Trump administration was worried about South Africa’s growing engagement with some of America’s adversaries.

On Wednesday, 24 June 2026, Bozell highlighted that South Africa’s non-alignment claims were dubious at best.

“The South African government rolls out the red carpet for Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister. Deputy President Mashatile is in Beijing deepening ties with China,” he said.

“South Africa can’t claim the mantle of non-alignment while actively courting America’s adversaries. These are choices, and they speak for themselves.”

Cyril Ramaphosa is playing with fire

Freedom Front Plus leader Corne Mulder warned that time is running out for South Africa, which has ignored the five American conditions for a year.

“The ANC, which views South Africa’s foreign policy primarily as its own domain, proceeded as if the US’s request did not exist,” he said.

This, he said, has consequences. “A week ago, America directly suspended its PEPFAR medical funding to South Africa because of this,” he said.

Earlier this month, the United States initiated a phased drawdown of PEPFAR (President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) funding in South Africa.

The United States cited Pretoria’s failure to meet specific geopolitical and domestic policy demands.

This decision will eventually result in the withdrawal of over $400 million in annual HIV/AIDS assistance and clinical support.

“Washington has clearly not forgotten the conditions that were set, despite the ANC’s dismissive attitude in the hope that it might disappear.”

The US Congress added that the PEPFAR action forms part of a general review of the relationship between the US and South Africa.

It was also emphasised that the cancellation of the funding should be seen as a strategic signal regarding the relations between the countries.

“Like non-alignment in foreign relations, this concerns broader and general bilateral policy issues between the countries rather than isolated aspects thereof,” Mulder said.

“It is a pity that the ANC allowed this critical opportunity to restore ties to slip away, at the expense of all ordinary South Africans.”