Trump could get real about SA any time: John Matisonn

Key Points:.Trump officials cite SA's ties to Russia, China, Iran as security risks.Elon Musk's growing influence may reshape SA-US collaboration.US to prioritize Africa's minerals, anti-terrorism, and Kenya ties..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here..The seventh BizNews Conference, BNC#7, is to be held in Hermanus from March 11 to 13, 2025. The 2025 BizNews Conference is designed to provide an excellent opportunity for members of the BizNews community to interact directly with the keynote speakers, old (and new) friends from previous BNC events – and to interact with members of the BizNews team. Register for BNC#7 here..If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.By John Matisonn* ___STEADY_PAYWALL___.South Africa could be Washington's crosshairs as soon as the Trump Administration turns its attention to its South Africa policy and our benefits from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). .All four of US President Donald Trump's top foreign policy officials who will advise on its South Africa policy have objected to South Africa remaining AGOA's top beneficiary despite a requirement that we "not engage in activities that undermine US national security or foreign policy interests.".To prepare to counter these risks, President Cyril Ramaphosa is relying on Ebrahim Rassool, new SA ambassador to Washington, who has called on South Africa to "lower the megaphone", and ongoing contact with billionaire Elon Musk, probably Trump's most influential adviser..Trump's choice of Secretary of State, Senator Marco Rubio, his National Security Adviser, Rep. Michael Waltz and United Nations Ambassador, Rep. Elise Stefanik have all publicly complained that South Africa has acted against US foreign policy interests.. .Peter Pham, tipped for the top Africa position as the Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, wrote that the Biden administration overlooked this "notwithstanding the country's closeness to Russia, China and Iran, and its role in leading the 'genocide' case against Israel at the International Court of Justice.".In an article in the Jerusalem Strategic Tribune in November, Pham said South Africa positioned itself "in the orbit of Moscow, Beijing and Teheran and described its position on Israel as "anti-Semitic antics.".Trump is likely to step up ties with Kenya and promote its relationship with Kenya's "Silicon Savannah" as tech hub partner to the US, which began in his first administration. Washington is also likely to continue to expand its ties with Angola, where the US financed the Lobito railway as a link to minerals in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo..Read more: Johann Rupert urges action to save AGOA for South Africa.Since Ramaphosa's meeting with Musk, the South African born billionaire has grown increasingly close to the incoming president, and government is looking at options to bring Musk into South Africa on several projects including Starlink, to provide wifi to rural areas and build a battery facility..Musk has been clear that he will not hand over shares in his companies as part of BEE requirements, and alternatives are being explored. A deal with Musk would give the GNU a much-needed boost, and it's likely that Trump would be involved and would also want foreign policy changes..Musk's donation of more than $250million to Trump's campaign and his support for the campaign on social media, where he owns X, formerly known as Twitter, have given him the prime seat at the presidential table. .He will be one of two heads of the so-called "department of government efficiency", which is intended to slash costs in government. One report said Musk will have an office in the Executive Office Building, which is next door to the White House and connects to it through an underground tunnel..Pham's article highlights other Africa priorities for the new administration, including minerals and anti-terrorism. Africa's minerals "are key to securing supply chains for US defence needs as well as the demands of America's renewed domestic industries.".He also points to the 2024 Global Terrorism Index Report conclusion that the epicenter of terrorism has moved from the Middle East and North Africa to sub-Saharan Africa, especially in the Sahel. .Read also:.Col. Chris Wyatt: Musk & Trump, AGOA & the GNU & those elite sex scandals…Deputy Trade Minister Andrew Whitfield: AGOA renewal, slashing red tape and SA's economic revivalAGOA & Trump, the GNU & foreign policy – Colonel Chris Wyatt.*John Matisonn is the author of CYRIL'S CHOICES, An Agenda for Reform.

Trump could get real about SA any time: John Matisonn

Related Stories

Hersov: There are two South Africas — it's time Washington started treating them differently

Ian Bremmer on BizNews: Forces moving markets right now — and what to do about them

OpenAI plots biggest ChatGPT overhaul since launch

Gen-Z socialism rises on cost-of-living anger and AI anxiety