In early February, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he would boycott a G20 conference meeting this week with South Africa. Citing the host country’s support of “anti-Americanism,” with policy priorities such as climate change and diversity, equity, and inclusion, Rubio focused primarily on the alleged expropriation of private property by the current government in Johannesburg. Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 7 halting aid to South Africa in light of those accusations.

The Trump administration continues to accuse South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government of land grabs from private white farmers to balance racial discrepancies in real estate ownership. The 2024 South Africa Expropriation Act, signed into law in early 2025, allows for land seizure without payment for public use under specific circumstances, such as when the property is not the owner’s primary source of income.

Still, the country’s officials continue to insist there have been no acquisitions without compensation thus far. They point to the Land Audit Report of 2017 that recorded white South Africans owning 72% of the nation’s agricultural holdings as motivation for the current focus.

According to a State Department spokesperson, the Expropriation Act directly led Trump to suspend assistance to South Africa due to the country’s “unjust land expropriation law, as well as its growing relationship with countries like Russia and Iran.” The statement added that a serious review of U.S. South Africa policy is underway.

“The President has stated the United States will prioritize humanitarian relief, including consideration of eligibility for admission and resettlement through the United States Refugee Admissions Program, for disfavored ethnic minority Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination,” the spokesperson said.

Chrispin Phiri of the Office of the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation for the Republic of South Africa described Trump’s position on the Expropriation Act as misinformed.

“It is … an inaccurate historical account of South Africa,” Phiri said. “In post-apartheid South Africa, there has not been a single incident of land confiscation or seizure sanctioned by the state. The latest law passed by our parliament is similar to or in the mold of the eminent domain act in the USA.”

As for South Africa’s G20, Phiri insisted the conference’s focus remains in keeping with the same conferences held in Indonesia (2022), India (2023), Brazil (2023) and Italy (2021).

“One area in which we seek to develop momentum is the U.N. Sustainable Development Agenda, which requires that we foster a paradigm shift to accelerate the implementation of practical [climate] solutions,” he added. “Under our theme of ‘Solidarity, Equality and Sustainability,’ we will advance three task forces: Inclusive Economic Growth, Industrialization, Employment and Reduced Inequality; Food Security; and Artificial Intelligence, Data Governance and Innovation for Sustainable Development.”

Against the backdrop, Phiri accused the Trump administration of abandoning common priorities South Africa holds with the United States.

“We share a value on democracy, human rights, and the rule of law, but we do not believe the recent chasm is based on these values,” he said. “Our long-standing nonalignment on foreign policy … has been consistent. Our insistence on a geopolitical system grounded in the consistent application of international law, regardless of the actors involved, should be a common rallying call.”

Some analysts suggest that Trump’s aggression with South Africa is directly connected to the current unofficial DOGE chief Elon Musk, as the South African native is a vocal critic of the country’s government. However, Daniel Silke, director of the Cape Town-based Political Futures Consulting, reminded followers of the current drama that there’s a long history of tension between the U.S. and South African governments — including during the Biden administration.

“Even during the Biden administration, we saw issues relating to South Africa’s relatively close relationship with Moscow,” Silke said. “I don’t think the African National Congress has ever embraced the United States. There are old resentments about the U.S. and the West not aiding the liberation movements in the same way that the old Soviet Union or China did during that period.”

Silke credited some of the current tensions to South Africa’s active membership in BRICS, a partnership of emerging economies including China, Egypt, India, Iran, and Russia.

“[BRICS] led historically to a closer relationship between South Africa, China, and Moscow,” he said, “When you put them all of that together, it’s a bit of a recipe — the ingredients for tension.”

As for the land grab accusations, Silke agreed with Phiri that there are no current examples of such seizures in South Africa.

“As a populist government, why should [South African officials] not be concerned about adhering to the various conditions in our constitution that protect private property and therefore prevent land grabs?” Silke asked. “We have a checks and balances constitution that makes it extremely difficult for land grabs to happen.”

That said, Silke added that some of the current controversy was self-inflicted, as he finds the land reform program in South Africa to be run badly.

“State and local has been very poorly distributed, not to mention the handling of provision of finance to farmers,” he said. “There is room for improvements to be made.”

Allowing for those imperfections, Silke explained that current laws do guarantee government compensation for private lands acquired for public use. To make that clear to the Trump administration, Silke hopes for future direct engagement between governments.

“I think there’s an excellent case to be made for a multiparty delegation to Washington,” he said. “But again, the future is the future, and the likelihood or the success of that cannot be guaranteed.”

Now, with Rubio bypassing direct engagement with South African representatives, Phiri suggested the South African government will reach out to other entities in the American government.

“Our embassy in the U.S. has … especially intensified its efforts after the first post by President Trump on SA’s land reform in anticipation of possible action,” he explained. “We have been engaging both sides of the aisle in Congress and the Senate together with business and think tanks with the primary task of addressing the misrepresentation of our land use and other positions.”

John Scott Lewinski, MFA, is a writer based in Milwaukee.