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Palestine, Musk and BRICS: the issues dividing US and South Africa [1]
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Date: 2025-04
This week we turn to South Africa, one of the countries and territories that have particularly been in President Trump’s crosshairs - like Mexico, China, Greenland - since he took office.
Trump is particularly adversarial towards South Africa for a number of reasons which include but not limited to: South Africa’s case against the U.S.’ big ally, Israel, at the International Court of Justice for their reportedly genocidal execution of the war against Hamas and Palestinians. Also, Elon Musk, a Trump ally (for now) is particularly unhappy about South Africa’s recent land policy that intends to “take” land from white farmers for public use (under very particular circumstances) Musk has falsely framed it as a “white genocide” implying as well white farmers are being killed for their land, which is untrue.
Trump has since cut all foreign aid to South Africa, imposed tariffs, expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the U.S.A. for unfriendly comments about his actions.
For me it was important and (about time!) to look at this “global” story differently: not through the dominant American lens but rather from the South African view.
Sitting down with Menzi Ndhlovu, a risk analyst based in Capetown, in this conversation, we decided to go way beyond the headlines to understand how the internal workings of South Africa’s previously dominant political party, ANC (a longtime friend to the Palestinian liberation for instance) are often at odds with state policy, which is economically embedded with the U.S. We also learn how South Africa and the United States have historically shared a fraught relationship, way before Trump, and since the days of apartheid; and how he is really only picking at old wounds. Finally, we better understand the U.S. has an economic incentive to go after South Africa, which is a member of BRICs (a group antagonistic to U.S. economic interests); and that South Africa may soon be forced to face make an impossible choice between moral principle (defending Palestine) vs. economic pragmatism (keeping economic relations with America)
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In Solidarity is openDemocracy’s podcast about people, power, and politics. Support the show by visiting openDemocracy.net/donate.
Credits:
Presented by Ayodeji Rotinwa
Edited and produced by Nandini Archer, James Battershill & Ayodeji Rotinwa
Theme song ‘Odyssey’ performed by Edward Abela
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[1] Url:
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/podcasts/in-solidarity-podcast/trump-musk-south-africa-apartheid-menzi-ndhlovu/
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