South Africa's president to visit US next week

15/5/2025 6:09

South African President

Cyril Ramaphosa will travel to the United States on a working

visit next week and will meet U.S. President Donald Trump on May

21, Ramaphosa's office said in a statement late on Wednesday.



"President Ramaphosa will meet with President Donald Trump

at the White House in Washington DC to discuss bilateral,

regional and global issues of interest," South Africa's

presidency said.



"The president's visit to the US provides a platform to

reset the strategic relationship between the two countries," the

statement added.



Relations between South Africa and the U.S. have soured

significantly since Trump returned to the White House in

January.



Trump has cut all U.S. financial assistance to South Africa,

citing disapproval of its land reform policy and of its genocide

case at the International Court of Justice against Washington's

ally Israel.



This week the Trump administration welcomed 49 white

South Africans it has granted refugee status, having deemed them

victims of racial discrimination.



South Africa maintains there is no evidence of

persecution of white people in the country and Ramaphosa has

said the U.S. government "has got the wrong end of the stick".



The United States is South Africa's second-largest bilateral

trading partner after China.