Trump will halt South Africa’s funding due to the Expropriation Act

President Donald Trump of the United States said on Sunday that “certain classes of people” in South Africa were being treated “very badly” and threatened to stop financing the nation until the issue was looked into, but he did not provide any supporting evidence.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed that South Africa was “taking land away and treating certain groups of people VERY BADLY.”

“The United States will not tolerate it and will take action. Furthermore, he declared, “Until a thorough investigation into this matter is finished, I will be discontinuing all further funding to South Africa.”

According to the most available U.S. official statistics, the United States committed to providing South Africa with assistance totaling around $440 million in 2023.

Cryil Ramaphosa, the president of South Africa, approved a measure last month that would facilitate the state’s expropriation of land in the public interest.

The goal of the law is to eliminate the racial differences in property ownership that still exist thirty years after apartheid ended in 1994.

The foreign ministry of South Africa responded to Trump’s tweet by saying, “We trust President Trump’s advisers will make use of the investigative period to attain a thorough understanding of South Africa’s policies within the framework of a constitutional democracy.”

It continued: “It may become clear that our expropriation act is not exceptional, as many countries have similar legislation.”

Currently, South Africa is the G20 president; the United States assumes the role after that.

Regarding the nation’s relationship with Trump, Ramaphosa stated last month that he was not concerned. He claimed to have had a conversation with Trump following his election victory and to be eager to collaborate with his administration.

The U.S. would look into violent land grabs and unsubstantiated mass murders of white farmers in South Africa, Trump stated during his first term. According to Pretoria at the time, Trump was misled. Whether an inquiry was conducted by the Trump administration is unknown.

Elon Musk, a strong supporter of Trump, was born in South Africa. In response to a video of a far-left South African political party performing the anti-apartheid song “Kill the Boer (farmer)” on X in 2023, Musk wrote: “They are openly pushing for genocide of white people in South Africa.”

“@CyrilRamaphosa, why do you say nothing?” Musk inquired.

Musk and Ramaphosa spoke about investing in South Africa at their September meeting in the United States last year.