JOHANNESBURG—The South African government has stated that any “punitive action” taken against it by the Biden administration for Pretoria’s perceived support of Russia in its war against Ukraine would be based on “hysteria, hearsay, and contempt for South Africa’s sovereignty.”
The reaction comes after four powerful U.S. congressmen from the Democratic and Republican parties wrote a letter to senior Washington officials on June 9 effectively asking U.S. President Joe Biden to retaliate against South Africa.
It suggested that South Africa’s access to the U.S. government’s African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) be terminated.
AGOA gives 25 African countries preferential and duty-free access to U.S. markets.
South Africa’s exports to the United States under AGOA reached almost $1 billion in the first three months of 2023. It’s the second biggest beneficiary of the program after Nigeria.
The letter also requested that the AGOA Forum, at which U.S. officials and their African counterparts are to discuss trade ties between the world’s largest economy and the continent, be moved away from Johannesburg.
The meeting is supposed to be held in South Africa’s biggest city in November.
The letter, dated June 9, was signed by Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee; Rep. Mike McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs; Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking Republican member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), ranking Democratic member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
“We are seriously concerned that hosting the 2023 AGOA Forum in South Africa would serve as an implicit endorsement of South Africa’s damaging support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and possible violation of U.S. sanctions law,” the lawmakers wrote.
“Further, these actions by South Africa call into question its eligibility for trade benefits under AGOA due to the statutory requirement that beneficiary countries not engage in activities that undermine United States national security or foreign policy interests.”
They questioned whether a country in danger of losing AGOA status should have the “privilege” of hosting a meeting focused on the program.
“Our concerns are shared by many South African citizens and businesses, who are increasingly vocal about deteriorating conditions in the country,“ the letter reads. ”We encourage you to explore other possible locations to host this year’s forum.”
Chris Hattingh, a senior analyst at the Centre for Risk Analysis in Johannesburg, said it should be “very concerning” to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa that the warnings were coming from both sides of the U.S. political divide.
“Democrats usually give Africans a lot of leeway when it comes to foreign policy issues,“ Hattingh told The Epoch Times. ”The fact that liberal Democrats have lost patience with the South African government and its love affair with Russia and are now expressing open animosity to the ANC [African National Congress] government is very telling.
“This could be the biggest turning point in United States–South Africa relations since the end of apartheid, and it’s not going to be a turn for the better.”
The letter refers to U.S. intelligence reports that said Pretoria had provided weapons to Russia in December 2022.
“Late last year, a Russian cargo vessel [The Lady R] subject to U.S. sanctions docked in South Africa’s largest naval port, and intelligence suggests that the South African government used this opportunity to covertly supply Russia with arms and ammunition that could be used in its illegal war in Ukraine,” the letter reads.
Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, told The Epoch Times that the U.S. legislators’ letter was “unfair.”
“We maintain that the American intelligence reports are wrong. Our government did not supply arms to anyone. Nevertheless, we have appointed an independent panel to investigate what, if anything, was loaded onto Lady R,” Magwenya said.
“The U.S. members of Congress don’t have any proof of what they are claiming.
“U.S. intelligence services have also not released any evidence to support their claims. But in the eyes of these members of Congress, we are guilty as charged.”
He said the congressmen had “failed to recognize” that the South African government “is actively pursuing a peaceful end” to the conflict in Ukraine.
“We have been engaging with the United States, Ukraine, and Russia to this end,” Magwenya said. “President Ramaphosa is also part of the African Leaders Peace Mission that aims to end the conflict as soon as possible.”
He noted that Biden continued to encourage Ramaphosa to “use his access” to both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to “advocate for peace.”
“Therefore, any punitive trade action against South Africa will be based on hysteria, hearsay, and contempt for South Africa’s sovereignty. In the conduct of foreign policy, the government will always act in accordance with the prescripts of our constitution and laws,” Magwenya said.
The letter asking for action to be taken against South Africa came just a few weeks after senior ANC officials visited the Capitol to meet members of Congress to emphasize Pretoria’s “neutrality” in the war in Eastern Europe and to ask Washington to not exclude South Africa from AGOA.
“Either the pleas and convincing fell on deaf ears or the Americans simply didn’t believe the South African government delegation. My money’s on the latter,” Hattingh said.
The letter suggests that U.S. lawmakers aren’t convinced of South Africa’s “non-alignment.”
“In February, South Africa held joint military exercises with Russia and China, and in April, authorized a Russian military cargo plane also subject to US sanctions—to land at a South African air force base,” the letter reads.
“On top of this, in August, South Africa will host the BRICS Summit where the government aims to strengthen its ties with China and Russia and is working to facilitate the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite the outstanding arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court [ICC].”
The annual meeting of heads of state of the BRICS countries—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—is scheduled to be held in Johannesburg in late August.
Putin’s attendance is complicated by the fact that the ICC has issued an indictment against him for war crimes allegedly committed in Ukraine.
As a signatory to the law that established the ICC in Rome in 2002, South Africa is obligated to arrest Putin if he sets foot on its soil.
But Pretoria has stated that it has no intention of doing so and that it’s “exploring options” that would allow the Russian leader to attend the summit in person “without fear” of being taken into custody.
Some analysts say punishing South Africa would drive it further away from the West and more firmly into the China–Russia camp.
Hattingh said that’s where South Africa under the ANC is anyway.
