The United States’ message to South Africa that the ANC did not want to share

The United States tried to communicate its message to South Africa through the embassy or other official visitors, but could not get it into the public domain.

This was revealed by Freedom Front Plus leader Dr Corné Mulder, SAAI executive director Dr Theo de Jager, and NEASA CEO Gerhard Papenfus.

They shared their experience of visiting the White House and meeting United States officials at the 2026 BizNews conference in the Drakensberg last week.

Mulder, De Jager, and Papenfus formed part of an independent South African delegation that visited Washington in mid-2025.

This visit happened amidst deteriorating relations between the United States and South Africa, which included tariffs on local goods exported to the U.S.

The delegation engaged with United States officials to explain that the actions of the ANC government did not reflect the wishes of the South African people.

They urged the United States not to punish the country for the ANC’s actions and that targeted sanctions against specific politicians would be more appropriate.

“We went there to defend South Africa. During most of our discussions, we stated that if you want to punish South Africa, do not punish its people,” they said.

“We will provide the names of those who should be held accountable. We do not want sanctions. We want the country to continue to thrive for the benefit of everyone.”

After Mulder, De Jager, and Papenfus made their case and shared their views, the United States delegation asked them to listen to their message.

The American official told them that they had a message for South Africa that they had been unable to communicate effectively through the embassy or other official visitors.

This message was the requirements to restore relations between the United States and South Africa and create a more productive working relationship.

• The ANC must distance itself from the ‘Kill the Boer’ song.

• Farm killings must be declared a priority crime, similar to rhino poaching or cash-in-transit robberies.

• United States investors should be exempted from black economic empowerment (BEE) and employment equity requirements.

• The Expropriation Act must be amended so that market-related compensation is paid at the end of a legal process, rather than at the beginning.

The American officials later added a fifth requirement related to South Africa’s relationship with Iran.

This relationship showed that South Africa’s foreign policy was not independent and non-aligned, as the government claimed.

To date, the ANC has not addressed any of the requests from the United States, despite many of them being easy.

Distancing themselves from the Kill the Boer chant or declaring farm murders a priority crime is easy and widely seen as the right thing to do.

Instead, the ANC has doubled down on the Expropriation Act and said that farm attacks are addressed under the existing Rural Safety Strategy.

They also said Kill the Boer is protected as a historic liberation chant, and has rejected calls to exempt US companies from race-based economic legislation.

Corne Mulder slates the ANC

Corné Mulder slammed the ANC’s decision to ignore the five conditions from the United States for normalising relations between the two countries.

“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.

He said the result was that America suspended its PEPFAR medical funding to South Africa, worth billions of rands.

“Washington has not forgotten the conditions that were set, despite the ANC’s dismissive attitude,” Mulder said.

He added that the ANC’s hope that it might disappear over time, or that the United States was making empty threats, was misguided.

“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,” he said.

“There can be no further dragging of feet on this matter, and the government will have to approach it with the necessary seriousness.”

Mulder said that the United States’ 5 requirements to normalise relations will have to be placed back on the national agenda.