Minister of international relations and cooperation Ronald Lamola says he stands by his statements about US President Donald Trump, where he accused him of white supremacy.
However, Lamola does not think his statements will affect the trade negotiations between Washington and Pretoria. South Africa has been engaged in trade negotiations with the US following its decision to impose punitive tariffs.
Despite similar statements having resulted in a punitive response by the US against former ambassador Ebrahim Rasool and South African envoy to the US Mcebisi Jonas, Lamola said he did not believe that this would solicit a reaction from Washington.
Speaking to the Sunday Times on the sidelines of the G20 summit on Sunday, the outspoken minister, who has often taken on the country’s presidents, said his utterances “are a reflection of reality on the ground”.
“The executive order [by the US] is for Afrikaners. You must be white and you must be Afrikaner. What does that mean? It’s a race-based policy. That can’t be an issue. It is a reality.”
Lamola first accused the Trump administration of pursuing an agenda of “white supremacy” in a CNN interview last week.
“It was excruciatingly difficult that there’s fearmongering to pursue the agenda of white supremacy,” said Lamola about the contentious May 21 meeting at the White House, in which Trump repeated claims of “white persecution”.
In the interview, CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan asked Lamola: “Do you think Trump is pursuing the white supremacist agenda?
“Yes, I think so,” responded Lamola, adding: “With the programme to take white Afrikaners from South Africa, it’s a clear programme to back up the issue of white supremacy. When you look at the Geneva Convention, they don’t fit the definition of a refugee.”
It’s a victory for multilateralism. Ironically, yesterday the COP 30 declaration was also adopted in Brazil, so it’s clear that multilateralism is growing and being reaffirmed by all countries in the world. There is an understanding that multilateralism serves us across the globe.
— Ronald Lamola, international relations minister
Pretoria faced several diplomatic challenges with the US in the lead-up to the G20 leaders’ summit, culminating in Trump’s boycott of the event. Trump went further to demand that South Africa refrain from adopting a leaders’ declaration in its absence, arguing that this would not constitute consensus.
The US would then issue a second diplomatic note announcing it was sending a junior delegation to the summit handover. This was promptly rejected by South Africa and other G20 countries.
Insiders said European leaders were particularly angered by the behaviour of the US administration, which they view as not only undermining South Africa but the G20 as a whole.
In a historic move that would see President Cyril Ramaphosa emerging victorious against the world’s most powerful leader in Trump, the 19-member states in attendance adopted the declaration on the first day of the summit.
“It’s a victory for multilateralism. Ironically, yesterday the COP 30 declaration was also adopted in Brazil, so it’s clear that multilateralism is growing and being reaffirmed by all countries in the world. There is an understanding that multilateralism serves us across the globe,” Lamola said, reflecting on the outcomes of the summit.
He said the summit also proved that the Global South is providing leadership that has never been seen before.
“These institutions that have been created after the Second World War have served us well. We need to maintain them, but there is a need for reform to ensure there is representivity that reflects the realities,” he said, pointing to the need for the reform of the Security Council.
He added he was confident that the declarations adopted at the leaders’ summit would find expression at multilateral platforms and further find space in domestic policies of member states.
Lamola reiterated that Pretoria was open to handing over the G20 presidency to the US, however, he said they had received no communication from the US embassy.
“We have said that if they want it to be done, we remain open and available at an appropriate level at Dirco offices, and it’s up to them. From us, the ball has moved; we are done. If they want to come, we are open, and an equivalent ambassador will do the honours.”
Finance minister Enoch Godongwana said he did not fear that the US would deviate from its economic declarations, arguing that in the G20 finance track was based on the global financial crisis.
“Therefore, there are standing agenda items which relate to us managing those issues. I don’t think the US is likely to change that. Everybody, when they change over, you put your own footprint by developing your own priorities, but broadly the G20 will remain focused on some of these legacy issues,” Godongwana said.
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