President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa has retaliated against President Donald Trump of the United States for threatening to stop financing for alleged land theft and abuse of specific populations.
Hours earlier, Trump claimed on his official X page that South Africa was “confiscating” land and “treating certain classes of people very badly” while threatening to stop all further financing to the nation until an investigation was completed.
Ramaphosa called on Trump to refrain from interfering in South African affairs during a speech on Monday morning.
“I don’t know what Trump has to do with South Africa because he has never been here. He should keep his America and we keep our South Africa. South Africa is our land, South Africa belongs to all the people who have been living here,” he said.
“He can keep his America. Donald Trump must leave us alone because he did not help us fight apartheid, we did it on our own. He was not on the table when we negotiated. We will find solutions to our problems,”
The land issue in South Africa has long been contentious, and conservatives, such as Elon Musk, the richest person in the world and a significant Trump adviser, have criticized attempts to address the inequalities of white domination.
Last month, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa signed a measure stating that the government may provide “nil compensation” for property it chooses to expropriate in the public interest under specific conditions.
“South Africa is confiscating land, and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!” Trump wrote.
